


Unusual Circumstances

by actuallyronanlynch



Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, Fantasy, Love y'all motherfuckers, M/M, Multiple Pov, Shout out to all my high school and uni friends who are reading this, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-02
Updated: 2016-08-22
Packaged: 2018-02-27 23:30:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2710661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/actuallyronanlynch/pseuds/actuallyronanlynch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes things happen unexpectedly. Sometimes your parents kick you out for being gay. Sometimes your parents don't believe you're gay at all. Sometimes you don't feel like living any more. Sometimes you're not human yourself. Sometimes you're the offspring of something completely inhuman. Sometimes you're a young adult who has no idea what to do with their life. Sometimes you've been a young adult for decades. Sometimes life throws you unusual circumstances, and you have to deal with them to the best of your abilities.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Nighttime was always the worst. It was cold, it was hard to see, and there was no distraction from the hunger unless one was running from the people that came out in the later hours of the day. Nighttime was the most dangerous for a kid on the streets.

Dallas had formulated a sort of routine when he had adjusted to living without a home. If he had any money, he would go into a coffee shop and buy a drink to be able to stay in the store for a few hours (until he was kicked out, he always was), and then he would venture back into the cold and try to find the driest, warmest, safest place he could sleep.

It was raining. That was the worst part, he decided. He was chilled to the bone and didn’t have anything dry to change into, as his backpack had been stolen the previous week.

He hadn’t eaten in three days. It felt as if his stomach was slowly chewing itself apart, gnawing at anything it could to try and keep him alive.  _So this is what starving feels like._

It had been a thought that had popped into his head multiple times over the past couple of weeks. He had seen other boys and girls, older and younger than he was, waiting around after hours and disappearing into cars. He knew that it was dangerous. He knew that it was appalling, and scarring. But it also made quick money.

That was how he found himself absently standing by the intersection of one of the busier downtown streets, nearly deserted in the late hours of the night. He had one arm wrapped around his torso, the other tightly gripping the base of the street sign, trying to keep himself upright despite the fact that he was shaking uncontrollably, partially due to the rain and partially due to sharp fear.

It was a last resort, a desperate attempt at survival. It had to be done. He was wasting away, and he didn’t have anywhere to go, or anyone to confide in. He was truly alone, and had to find a way to make it on his own.

The young brown-haired boy rubbed the back of his hand across his eyes, trying to fight exhaustion as he leaned against the metal pole. Someone would come; someone always did. He looked up as he heard the sound of an engine running, headlights of a car momentarily blinding him as it pierced through the veil of darkness surrounding him. He resisted the urge to curl in on himself, standing up straighter leaning forward slightly, making it known that he wanted the vehicle to stop.

He let out an uneven breath, biting his lip to keep it from trembling. He had to be brave. It would keep him alive.

Dallas swallowed hard as the car pulled over to the edge of the road, nausea forming in his stomach and he tried to steel himself for what he would have to say. He closed his eyes, praying to any god that was willing to listen to help him find an alternative, but he already knew there wasn’t one. He took a deep breath, waiting until the driver had rolled down the window before attempting to speak. He silently noted that the person was a man.

“Eighty bucks,” he said softly, so quiet he wasn’t even sure the other man would hear. It had been said; he couldn’t take it back, even if he wanted to.

"Beg pardon?" the driver asked, a faint frown settling over his features.

The brown-haired boy shut his eyes for another moment, trying to think back to a better time, cue up a memory that would keep him from breaking down. He clenched his hands into fists to try to stop them from shaking, and ducked down to look into the open window. “Eighty dollars. I’ll do whatever you tell me to.” he said, his voice slightly louder than before, but it shook worse than his body was.

The man’s eyes widened slightly in shock; Dallas realised for that he might have made a poor decision, because he was vulnerable in front of the man at this moment. The man could let him into his car and he could shut his eyes and try to get it over with as quickly as possible, or things could turn out worse than they had been to begin with.

“Is it all right if we go back to my place?” the man asked, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. Dallas’ stomach clenched uncomfortably, and he barely willed himself not to throw up. His stomach was empty, anyway.

“Whatever you want.” he answered quietly, staring down unseeingly at the ground. It would hurt. He knew that. He had heard the stories. He would be lucky if he got away without a beating, or worse.

The man nodded, and Dallas slowly made his way around to the passenger side of the car, wordlessly sliding inside and not bothering to put on his seat belt.

“How old are you?” the man asked, pulling back onto the road. Dallas wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to make sure he wasn't underage, or if he didn’t care about that sort of thing. The man himself only looked to be in his early twenties.

“Eighteen.” Dallas replied honestly, and the man nodded again, falling silent. The brunet wrapped his arms around his slim waist, trying to provide some comfort for himself. He still felt sick, and his entire frame was shaking with barely-suppressed fear.

They arrived back at the man’s house quicker than he had anticipated; the reality of the situation sunk in when he got out of the car and followed the man up the steps to the front door. It was a relatively large house in central Stamford, and Dallas was genuinely surprised that someone who looked so young could afford something as nice as the house.

“Listen,” the man started, gently shutting the door behind them as they stepped into the foyer. “I don’t.. Want to do anything to you, all right? You look like you’re frozen through from the rain. Why don’t you go upstairs and take a shower and I’ll make you something to eat?” he added, his voice persuasively soft. Dallas wanted to believe him, so badly, but he was too wary. He shook his head once, and the man let out a sigh.

“I promise you I won’t do anything. I’ll tell you my name so you could report me to the police if I did. I’m Asa Fukasu.” the man -Asa- said, and Dallas searched his face intently, but he couldn’t tell whether he was telling the truth or not.

The teenager relented after another moment, and Asa kicked off his shoes and gestured for Dallas to do the same before heading up the stairs. He grabbed a towel from a linen closet and led Dallas down the hall to the bathroom. “I could try to find you something dry to wear.” he offered, and the brunet slowly nodded, taking the towel. “I’ll leave them outside the door.” he added. “Just use the stuff in the shower, it’s either mine or one of my roommate’s, so it’s fine.” he told Dallas before turning to leave, giving him privacy to wash.

Dallas stripped out of his dripping wet clothing after shutting the door behind himself, clambering into the shower and turning on the water. He stood still under the stream for a while, merely absorbing the heat and trying to calm his nerves.

He washed off quietly with the toiletries that were lying about in the shower, staying in the tub a little longer than necessary to try to absorb some of the warmth of the water. It felt like such a luxury; he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d had a warm, let alone  _hot_ , shower.

He reluctantly got out after a while longer, towelling off before wrapping it around his waist and peeking out of the room. As Asa had promised, there was a neat pile of clothes folded in front of the door. He took them and went back inside, getting dressed before venturing out to see where the taller man had gone. He headed down the stairs, pausing for a moment as he heard voices in the kitchen.

“It’s not like we can just  _leave_ him,” It was Asa’s voice.

“That’s not what I’m saying, Christ. All I’m saying is, do you really know anything about this kid?” A second voice -with a very faint British accent- that presumably belonged to one of Asa's aforementioned roommates.

"It doesn't matter. He's all alone, and he can stay here as long as he wants."

Hearing that gave Dallas a minuscule burst of courage, and he slowly rounded the corner and peered into the kitchen.

"Oh," the man Dallas didn't recognise said, noticing the teenager from his spot at the table. Asa was leaned back against the counter, and turned to face the brunet as he reluctantly stepped into the kitchen.

"I heated up some soup for you." Asa said, smiling gently as he gestured to a bowl set out at a vacant seat at the table. Dallas nodded and sat down, pretending not to notice the way he was being studied by both men.

“Thank you.” Dallas mumbled, realising after a moment that it was the first thing he had said to Asa since telling him how old he was. He took a mouthful of the soup, recognising it as miso. It was warm and didn’t seem compromising, so he continued to eat it in relative silence.

“So, what’s your name?” Asa asked mildly, taking a seat next to the blond man at the table.

The brunet pondered the question for a moment; was it safe to tell the man his name? He hadn’t given him a reason not to trust him, and he had allowed him to use his shower and made him some food. A first name couldn’t hurt, could it? “Dallas,” he admitted into the soup, staring down unseeingly at the table.

“This is Eryx.” Asa told him, gesturing to his roommate. “He lives here with me, my cousin and another friend.” he explained, and Dallas nodded slowly. The big house made sense, then. “Dallas, do you live anywhere? Or have anywhere you could stay?” the dark-haired man asked, and the teenager thought about it for a moment before slowly shaking his head.

Eryx tapped Asa's shoulder and leaned over to mutter something under his breath to the other man, quietly, so Dallas couldn't hear. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" Eryx asked, albeit cautiously; Dallas didn't know them well, but they had taken him in for the time being.

"My parents kicked me out." he told them quietly, noting the way Asa's eyebrows furrowed slightly at the information.

"That's... Really shitty." Eryx offered, his voice sympathetic despite his obvious struggle over what to say.

Dallas shrugged, prodding the soup with his spoon. "It could've been worse, given what my father thinks of faggots like me." he muttered, not meeting the other men's eyes, but he could tell that they wore expressions of shock.

"You could stay with us," Asa blurted out, and Dallas' gaze flicked up to study his face. Neither of them looked particularly threatening; they were only probably a handful of years older than he was, but appearances could be deceiving.

Dallas shook his head firmly, wrapping his arms around his torso. "It's too expensive, and you don't even know me." he protested.

Asa waved a hand dismissively. "I didn't know Eryx when we all moved in together, and he still doesn't pay rent." Eryx looked somewhat put-out, but he didn't deny it. "You seem like a nice enough kid. I mean... No one deserves to live on the street." he added in a gentler tone.

Dallas felt his eyes tearing up slightly, but he quickly blinked them away. "I.. Thank you." he managed, his voice wavering dangerously.

Asa smiled, getting up from the table to finish cleaning up some dishes that were scattered across the counter. "Don't worry about it. I'll get you settled in the guest room downstairs in a bit, okay?"

Dallas felt a little uneasy despite the fact that he should be feeling beyond grateful, but he nodded minutely and continued to eat his soup.

 

\---

 

Asa gathered quickly that Dallas wasn't much of a talker. He listened well, of course, and followed the fae around like a half-lost puppy dog when he wasn’t sleeping or sporadically cleaning, but it didn’t do any harm, so Asa didn’t comment on it. Despite the heat outside, Dallas seemed to favour sweaters or long sleeve shirts that he could pull down over his hands— it had been hard enough to buy him clothes without listening to quiet, distressed protests, so in the end, Asa had resorted to buying his clothes when he wasn’t with him and giving them to him without a say in the matter.

In a rare display of flesh, Dallas was sitting outside under the shade of the large oak tree that grew to the side of the spacious backyard in a t-shirt and shorts, watching Asa move about and water the various types of flowers and plants that grew freely in the garden. He had only been staying with them for a few weeks, but Asa had already grown quite fond of him. He reminded him a lot of his sisters (not necessarily personality-wise, because they were little shits, but just in general). He figured he might as well show Dallas a little bit of what fae magick was like, given his rather innocent confusion over the concept.

“Why don’t you have any wings?” Dallas asked curiously, stretching his legs out so the tips of his toes poked out of the shade and into the bright sunlight bathing the garden. Asa had been asked that question more times than he could actually count; Eryx repeatedly asked him, but it was with the intent to bother him, whereas Dallas was genuinely interested in the response.

“Faes can choose to.. Hide their wings, in a way.” he explained, setting down his watering can before sitting down in the grass beside the teenager, the shade instantly cooling his overheated flesh. “We can form and unform them using magick, as well, so I don’t have mine most of the time because they tend to get in the way of everyday activities.”

Dallas nodded, his gaze flicking to Asa’s back. “So you just..  _Will_ them to appear and disappear?” he inquired, resting his chin in his palm.

“Something like that.” Asa replied, leaning back with his palms flat against the pliable grass. “Here, if you put your palm against my shoulder blades, it’ll feel different,” he offered, waiting until Dallas hesitantly rested his hand against his back before rolling his shoulders. The brunet gasped quietly, feeling the additional bones shifting underneath the fae’s skin. “The ligaments and bones are still in place, it’s just the magick that gets turned on and off.” he explained, and Dallas slowly nodded, seeming to understand.

They fell into a comfortable silence, Asa gently brushing his fingers through the grass as Dallas looked around the garden. “You’re the only one who takes care of all the plants?” he murmured, looking over the older boy. Asa nodded, reluctantly hauling himself to his feet to find his watering can again.

“Yeah. It’s easier for me, I guess, with the nature magick and stuff.” he replied, and Dallas nodded silently.

Asa wondered, as he was watering his hydrangeas, if Dallas missed living at home. He never spoke about his parents (for good reason, Asa thought), and he seemed to be adjusting well to living with him, Eryx, Tai and Felix, but… They barely knew him, and sometimes he just seemed lonely.

“Hey, do you wanna go out later or something?” Asa asked, turning his head to look at the teener. Dallas arched a brow incredulously, tilting his head to the side.

“To do what?”

Asa shrugged, glancing back down at the flowers. “Anything, I don’t care. The other guys can come, as well. It… Might help to let them get to know you better, you know?”

Dallas seemed to consider this, pulling a blade of grass out of the ground and twisting it between his fingers. “All right.” he said passively, and Asa shot him a small smile before continuing on his way around the backyard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rating will go up steadily as chapters progress ^.^ More characters to be introduced! I hope everyone liked it.  
> Cross-posted on my [Tumblr](http://fabulouslyhomosapien.tumblr.com/).


	2. Chapter 2

Tai cut the engine as he pulled into the driveway, grabbing his backpack off of the passenger seat before heading up to the house. It was quiet when he stepped inside; quieter than usual, given he wasn’t around to monitor his roommates now that it was September and his third year of university had begun. Asa and Eryx were usually bickering about something, or Felix was usually banging loudly on his drums in the basement. Tai felt bad for Dallas half of the time, and the other half he reasoned with himself that, despite his reticent demeanour, the teenager seemed to enjoy a fair amount of activity around him.

“Felix?” he called, kicking off his sneakers before heading up the stairs to the third floor, where his and Felix’s rooms were situated.

“In my room,” Felix called back nonchalantly, then added, "Have you seen my jacket? I'm going out and it wasn't in the closet downstairs, and it's not in here."

Tai pushed open his roommate’s bedroom door and stepped inside, watching him dig through his closet in amusement. "To be honest, I think I saw Eryx wearing it the other day." he answered with a sympathetic look, awkwardly running a hand through his sandy-brown hair. The vampire was somewhat of a kleptomaniac.

Felix waved a hand dismissively, apparently having given up on trying to retrieve his jacket from Eryx. “How was class?” he asked conversationally, pulling a dark hoodie out of his closet and slipping it on instead.

“Pretty good. I actually saw something posted up outside my cognitive sci class that I thought might interest you.” Tai replied, pulling his phone out of his pocket and opening up the note he’d created with the details from the flyer he’d seen. He offered it to Felix, who took it and quickly scanned the screen.

“A guy’s looking for band members?” he asked for clarification, looking a little intrigued even as he handed the phone back.

“That’s what it said,” Tai answered, pocketing the device before plopping down onto the brunet’s bed. “It pretty much said that any instrumentalists or vocalists were welcome. You’ve been looking for some type of gig, haven’t you?”

Felix nodded, turning back around to fix his hair in the mirror. The fae came to a vague conclusion regarding where the human was actually going; he never put that much effort into getting ready unless he was going out with _someone_.

"So, you've got a date?" Tai asked, momentarily forgetting about their previous conversation.

Felix glanced over his shoulder, quirking an eyebrow in faint amusement. "Yes, actually. I'm going to dinner. Tell me more about this band gig later, hm?"

"Sure.” Tai said. “With a guy or a girl?" he added quickly, lifting his head slightly to look at his friend. Felix was openly bisexual; he had dated a variety of both genders throughout high school, including many of his and Tai's then-friends.

"Girl." the brunet answered, glancing over at the fae sprawled out on his bed with a faint smirk. “Don’t worry, I’ll behave, _mom_.”

Tai rolled his eyes at the comment, but smiled good-naturedly nevertheless and tucked his hands behind his head as he relaxed against the mattress. "Where did you meet her?" he asked, trying not to sound like he was interrogating the human.

"At that café downtown. You know, the one that serves really good caramel macchiatos." he replied, and the fae let out a quiet laugh.

"Well, I hope you have a good time. I’ll give you more details about the band thing when you get back, all right?"

Felix hummed distractedly, fishing a bottle of cologne out of his dresser.

Tai reluctantly pushed himself off of the bed, giving Felix one last look before he headed back to his own room, trying to ignore the knots he could feel forming in his stomach.

 

\--- 

 

Tai looked up from where he was curled up on the couch watching TV as he heard the door unlock, figuring Felix was finally back from his date. It was midnight, and the fae should have already gone to bed, but he had waited up for the brunet to see how things had gone.

Felix shut the door behind him, hanging his jacket up before he turned and noticed Tai. "Oh, hey." he murmured, offering a lazy smile.

Tai smiled back slightly, turning the TV volume down a few notches. "Hey. How was the date?" he asked, looking up at the taller man. He shrugged, leaning against the doorframe.

"It didn't really work out. I wasn't really that into her." he added casually, brushing his dark-brown hair out of his eyes.

"Oh. That's too bad." Tai responded, pretending to sympathise with the human though he was truthfully more than a little relieved.

Felix shrugged, running a hand down his face. "I'm a little too buzzed to care about it right now." he replied with a forced laugh, and the fae tried not to wince. He was drinking again. Had the girl been over the drinking age?

"So, do you want to talk about that guy from school again?" Tai started, watching as Felix’s glassy eyes tried and failed to properly focus on the fae’s face.

"Do you mind if we talk tomorrow morning, Tai? I’m really too tired and too drunk to focus on this right now..” Felix interrupted, and the fae pressed his lips together, nodding in mute response. “I’ll see you in the morning.” the brunet added before he turned and headed up the stairs.

Tai felt a tight coil of worry forming in his stomach, trying to run through different scenarios in his head as to how Felix had gotten his hands on more alcohol. Obviously he knew people who sold to minors, but Felix was still only twenty.

Trying to dismiss the thoughts, he told himself that it was probably a one-time-thing, that his best friend wasn’t relapsing and that everything would be okay. Suddenly uninterested in the show he had been watching, he rubbed tiredly at his eyes before flicking off the screen and trudging upstairs to get ready for bed.

 

\---

 

Hex glanced up from his laptop screen as his gender images professor changed the slide on the presentation, beginning to type down the new bullet points as instructor continued to lecture.

"There is a fair amount of speculation on both sides as to whether gender roles are innate or if they are taught to us by society," the professor said, the sound of students typing on keyboards creating a drone of background noise in the otherwise quiet lecture hall. “Even from a young age, the media targets young children by showing advertisements of boys playing with toy cars and engines, while girls are shown taking care of fabricated baby dolls and making dinner in kitchen sets. Have things always been this way, however? Society has been predominantly patriarchal throughout the centuries, but is it something that had been taught to humans in the past, or was it ingrained into every individual from the time that they were born?”

The lecturer paused as a man sitting in the back raised his hand, nodding to indicate that it was all right for him to speak. “Do hormone levels not affect the behaviour that is typically associated with each gender? Testosterone would lead males to be more aggressive, where estrogen and progesterone would lead to more emotional and nurturing responses in females.”

Hex looked behind him at the man in question, trying not to roll his eyes. “What about dominant women in matriarchal societies? Their hormone levels would be the same as women in typical society, would they not? There have been many female leaders in the past as well, showing that women do have the potential to be as assertive and powerful as men.” he countered, raising an eyebrow challengingly at the man.

“Gender roles have been prevalent in society long before the mass media existed, dating all the way back to medieval times where—”

“But even _further_ back than that, say, to prehistoric times, there has been evidence found that men and women had opposite roles to what each gender is associated with today. They were equal. Women hunted, men took care of children; it wasn’t the typical gender roles that are shown in society today.”

“Gender is something that someone is born with. People identify as a man or a woman, both or neither, but the fact is that it is something that is established at birth. Take transgender people for example. A lot of the time, they experience dysphoria, because they feel that they have been born into the wrong body. It’s something that is _innate_ , not something that is learned.”

“But gender and gender roles aren’t the same thing!” Hex argued, starting to feel a little worked up as the exchange continued. “Of course gender _identity_ is something that you’re born with. But stereotypes inflicted by the media don’t have to do with the gender you identify as. There are these concepts of the typical ‘man’ and the typical ‘woman’— take for example how often a man or a woman in a same-sex relationship is asked which partner is the ‘man’ and which is the ‘woman’. The point is that there are _two men_ or _two women_ , not one person of each sex. Typical masculinity and femininity are associated with dominance and submissiveness, which is transferred over into atypical relationship constructions that don’t conform to the gender roles taught by society—”

“All right, you two, we need to continue on with the class.” the professor interrupted, and Hex shot the man a look before turning back around in his seat, facing the front. _What a smug asshole_ , he thought to himself, still somewhat animated from the heated discussion.

 

\---

 

Hex took a long drag from his cigarette before stubbing out the remains in the ashtray, exhaling languidly before climbing the stairs to the main floor to answer the door. The man on the other side was tall with tanned skin and dark eyes, and surprisingly bright teal hair. His right eyebrow was pierced, and he held a guitar case in one hand, the other tucked into the pocket of his jeans.

“Felix?” Hex asked, stepping aside to let the man into his house.

“Cay,” he corrected with a very faint smile, joining Hex in the entryway as he shut the door behind him.

“Right. Shit. Right. Felix is the drummer.” he muttered, mostly to himself. “Want a beer?” he added, strolling farther into the house.

“Ah, no thanks. Screws with my singing voice.” Cay replied politely, kicking off his shoes before following after the redhead.

“I’ve got a mic set up in the basement and an amp you can plug your guitar into.” Hex explained, starting down the stairs and hoping that the blue-haired man was still following. “The other guy should be here pretty soon. I guess we’ll see if you’re still around by then.” he added, grinning over his shoulder at the other man before sinking down onto the small couch that sat against the back wall.

Cay got to work setting up his guitar (acoustic, Hex was half disappointed to note), and turned on the amp connected to the mic before glancing up at the redhead who was sprawled out on the sofa.

“Go ahead when you’re ready, I’m listening,” Hex told him, digging his cigarettes and lighter out of his pocket as Cay strummed a few chords in preparation.

His guitar playing was nice, but not unlike anything Hex had heard that day. He leaned back against the couch, inhaling through his cigarette as Cay leaned forward so he was within the range of the mic and began to sing.

“The fact that you love me doesn’t pardon my sin, and I won’t forgive myself if I let you let me in. You should turn and run before you're caught up in my guise. I lie motionless on the floor as you stare into my eyes,” he recited, his voice low and somewhat gravelly in a charming and almost captivating way. “Please tell me there’s a reason why you stay, because the thought of losing you makes me feel insane. Is this a tragedy, or a catastrophe? Oh oh oh, can’t save me now.”

Hex forget about his cigarette momentarily as he listened to Cay's voice, sitting on the edge of his seat in anticipation until the man's voice faded out and he strummed the last chord on his guitar.

"Damn," he murmured breathlessly, leaning over to tap his cigarette over the ashtray balanced on the coffee table before pressing it to his lips again. "Did you write that? What's it called?"

"Tragedy or Catastrophe." Cay answered, running a hand through his hair as Hex looked over him intensely. He looked a little uncomfortable.

"You brilliant bastard. Welcome to the band." the redhead beamed, and Cay smiled back before moving to unhook his guitar. "No, leave it in for now. I want to try something after the drummer gets here. You can take a seat for now, if you'd like."

The doorbell rang, and Hex glanced in the direction of the stairs, holding up his index finger to Cay before heading back up to the first floor. He was a little surprised to see three people waiting on the other side of the door; he had only been expecting _one_ drummer.

"I see you brought an entourage," he chuckled, addressing whichever man was Felix. One of them was tall with shaggy brown hair and a stubbly face, and hazel eyes that simply radiated neutrality. The second man was short and pretty-looking, with the brightest blue eyes he had ever seen, and sandy brown hair that looked carefully styled in a way intended to seem effortless. The third man intrigued Hex the most; he had striking violet eyes and dark, fluffy hair, and Eastern features that seemed rounded by a mix of North American genes. The labret piercing just below his lower lip glinted metallically in the entryway light.

"Felix? Felix." he said, smiling when the shaggy-haired man raised the hand that wasn't holding his equipment as indication and salutation simultaneously. "Do you want a beer? I can grab you one."

"Thanks, that'd be great—"

"No, thank you. He's underage." the pretty-looking one interrupted, and Hex quirked an eyebrow before nodding in response. He led them down to the basement to join Cay in the relatively empty space, stubbing out his cigarette before joining the teal-haired man on the couch. The house was large for just one person, but he hadn't wanted to live in an apartment, where he wouldn't be able to practice his music.

Felix began to set up his drum kit, and Hex noted that he was efficiently fast. _Good to keep in mind_. “You guys can sit, too, if you want,” he said, addressing the two men who had accompanied Felix, who were lingering semi-awkwardly between the staircase and the drummer setting up.

The pretty one nodded, gesturing for the other to follow him and gingerly sat down next to Hex on the sofa. “I’m Tai, by the way,” he divulged, offering a gentle smile in turn. “And this is Asa.” he added hastily, gesturing to the dark-haired man, who gave a faint wave as he sunk down onto the couch.

“I’m Hex.” he replied with a small grin of his own.

"Is it all right if I smoke in here?" Asa asked as Felix sat down at his drums, adjusting a cymbal before picking up his drumsticks. Hex figured he was merely being polite, because his house definitely smelled of some form of smoke or another. He nodded, settling down as Felix cleared his throat to indicate that he was ready to begin.

"Be attentive," he told Cay, then levelled his gaze on the brunet.

Felix's drumming wasn't exceptional compared to anything else he'd seen that day, but there was something about it that grabbed his attention and held it like the other auditionees hadn't. He had a magnetic way of playing, an electric energy that radiated off of him in waves that Hex could practically see hanging in the air.

His movements were quick and precise and matched the heaviness with which Hex played guitar; he figured they'd have to make an arrangement with Cay, who seemed to prefer lighter genres.

"Awesome. Great. I dig it. Thoughts, Cay?" Hex beamed, watching Felix cast a glance in the teal-haired man's direction.

"I like it. Sounded good, man. Your timing is good."

"Wonderful. All right," Hex sighed, getting to his feet and letting his gaze sweep around the room. "I suppose I should show you two what I can do, now that we've formed a band?"


	3. Chapter 3

Dallas had finally settled into a familiar rhythm in his new house, and had adjusted to his four other roommates, who he had also started to get to know. Tai was really just a sweetheart and somewhat of a mother hen, making sure everyone was taken care of. He was cousins with Asa, even though they didn't look alike at all. Felix was a bit absent, but when he was around he usually lingered around Tai. They had been best friends since high school, and seemed almost inseparable. Eryx was close with Felix, as well, and enjoyed bothering Asa for God knows what reason. It really was a dangerous pastime.

Dallas himself was probably the closest to Asa. He considered him to be an older brother figure, having grown up an only child, and the fae told him repeatedly that he reminded him of his younger twin sisters.

Asa had a similar motherly instinct to Tai when it came to taking care of Dallas, and he had even begun to make dinner for the five of them (often Japanese food, but no one ever complained).

The brunet snapped out of his reverie, glancing down at the laptop balanced on his thighs. Tai had suggested he fool around on Asa's computer for a while when he had been wandering the house aimlessly, and who was he to turn down Internet use after being isolated online for months? He felt like he hadn't touched a computer in ages.

He opened the web browser and clicked the "new tab" button a few times, signing onto his social media accounts after a moment of hesitation. Despite his disappearance for the past several months, it didn’t appear that much had happened in his absence. Most of the people he had as contacts had finished their first year at university, and most of their updates were related to school. He accepted the few friend requests he had, and moved on to check the few messages he saw idling in his inbox.

One was from his cousin, asking him about some event that his family had held during the time he was away. He didn't bother replying to it. Another was just spam from someone he hadn't ever met in real life, and he ignored it, as well. The last one, however, caught his attention.

It was from an old high school friend; his name was Mitchell, and they hadn't seen each other many times after graduation, but they had still tried to stay in contact. The message had been sent three months ago, a simple greeting and asking how he had been doing. The last time he had spoken to Mitchell, he had been in the Philippines, working for his grandparents to earn enough money to be able to live on his own back in the US. He wondered if he had come back yet.

He typed a quick reply, staring at the message for a solid minute before hitting enter.

_Dallas Medina: ‘Hey, sorry I haven’t been around. I was dealing with some stuff with my parents, but I should be able to talk more now.’_

It felt stupid, sending such a pointless message. He and Mitchell weren’t close friends, and Dallas hadn’t really been all that social even when he did have access to a laptop. His disappearance had probably flown right under the radar, and he was making a big deal out of nothing.

He let out a quiet sigh, scrolling down his newsfeed to see what he had been missing on the web. He paused as he saw a familiar, blond-haired boy posing with a taller, more masculine man; Dallas scowled, quickly scrolling further down on the screen. Why did he still have Brennan in his contacts, anyway? They’d broken up ages ago.

He absently cracked his knuckles, reading the text on an image that a page he had liked had shared. He scoffed; it was an LGBT page. How obvious could he have been?

His gaze flicked up to the corner of the screen as a message popped up, and he was surprised to see that Mitchell had replied to his message already.

_Mitchell Tadena: 'I hope everything's going fine. How've you been? Haven't talked in ages xD'_

Dallas smiled faintly at the message, quickly typing back.

_Dallas Medina: 'Things were rough for a while, but I'm staying with some OK guys now. Are you still in the Philippines?'_

_Mitchell Tadena: 'Youre not living with your parents anymore? Where're you staying? Nope, I've been back in the States for a month now ^.^'_

_Dallas Medina: 'Nah, I'm living with a couple roommates down by the mall. Did you have a good time visiting your grandparents?'_

_Mitchell Tadena: 'Cool, anyone I know? Yeah, it was great, the work wasn’t too bad and I made quite a bit of money xD'_

_Dallas Medina: 'No, I just met them recently. They're nice guys, though. That’s good!'_

_Mitchelll Tadena: 'Aw, that's great :) We should hang out sometime, I could meet you down at the mall or something'_

_Dallas Medina: 'Im pretty much free whenever, when I'm not doing housework'_

_Mitchell Tadena: 'Are you busy now? xD I just finished at work and I could use a bite to eat'_

Dallas blinked at the screen for a moment, the offer taking a moment to sink in.

_Dallas Medina: 'Uh yeah I'm not doing anything. Where do you wanna meet up?'_

_Mitchell Tadena: ‘We could meet at the frozen yogurt place? Do you like frozen yogurt? xD’_

Dallas quickly opened a new tab and searched up the bus schedules, then Googled Mapped how long it would take to get to the mall from the new house.

_Dallas Medina: ‘Yeah, that’s fine. The next bus comes in twenty minutes and it’ll take a half hour to get there, so see you in about an hour?’_

_Mitchell Tadena: ‘Sure. See you then!’_

Dallas set the laptop aside, glancing around his room for a moment until he spotted his sweater and slipped it on. Maybe getting out of the house and trying to speak with old friends would do him some good.

 

\--- 

 

After purchasing their respective frozen yogurts (Dallas got vanilla with chocolate chips and cookie dough on top while Mitchell got pineapple with coconut shreds), they sat down at a table in the restaurant and slowly began to catch up on what had happened since they had last spoken to one another.

“My grandparents own a company in the Philippines that sells computer parts to larger companies to make the technology they sell in North America,” Mitchell explained around a mouthful of frozen yogurt, and Dallas nodded politely before the other boy continued. “My job was to organise shipments of the parts to the different companies, and to make sure we had enough of everything in stock. It was actually pretty high-paying and I didn’t have to do anything too strenuous.”

“That’s good,” Dallas replied, glad that Mitchell had been able to work to get some proper money. “I got a job a couple weeks ago, actually, to pay rent where I’m staying now.” He didn’t mention that Asa usually took less money than he knew he ought to be paying, so he made up for it by doing chores and baking his roommates little desserts as thank-yous. He’d always been good at baking.

“Oh, where are you working?” Mitchell asked, taking another bite of his yogurt.

“There’s this breakfast place twenty minutes from the place I’m staying,” Dallas explained, still uncomfortable with calling the house his home. “My shift’s usually around seven or eight, so Tai -one of the guys I live with- drives me on the way to school, since it’s not too much out of the way, and it takes, like, an hour to get to the shop by transit.” he added.

“Is Tai at the Stamford campus for the University of Connecticut?” Mitchell asked, tilting his head to the side slightly.

“He’s up in New Haven, actually, at Yale,” Dallas replied, sucking the frozen yogurt off of his spoon.

“Damn, he’s at Yale? He must be really freaking smart, then.”

“He’s actually one of the smartest people I know. You wouldn’t really be able to tell by talking to him, though. It’s not that he sounds dumb, but he doesn’t flaunt his intelligence like most people do. He’s just really nice.” Dallas explained. “He’s doing a bachelor of arts with a major in psychology because he wants to be able to help people. He really is something else.” he continued, a soft smile settling over his features.

“Good for him, man. He seems like a cool guy.” Mitchell laughed lightly.

“He is.” Dallas added, falling silent for a moment. He wasn’t used to talking for extended periods of time, especially about his own life, and he felt as if he was running out of things to say. “So, you said you were working somewhere here now?” he noted, remembering how Mitchell had said he had just finished up at work before meeting with him.

Mitchell nodded, seeming to brighten at the change in conversation. “Yeah, I’m giving lessons at the studio I dance at. I have jazz lessons for nine to eleven-year-olds and twelve to thirteen-year-olds on Mondays, hip hop for fourteen to seventeen-year-olds on Wednesdays, and I do choreography for comp routines on Thursdays and Fridays." he explained.

"You still dance?" Dallas inquired curiously, remembering that he had done dance competitions when they had been in high school.

“Yeah, I'm in a hip hop class for eighteen to twenty-year-olds on Tuesday nights, it’s been going really well so far. Maybe you could come watch sometime,” he grinned.

“I’d like that.” Dallas replied softly, looking down into his dessert cup. At least there was one person from his past that he didn’t mind speaking to, anyway.

 

\---

 

Hex was only half paying attention to the professor as he explained their current assignment. He had gotten the gist of the project by tuning in and out to what his prof was saying, and only fully focussed when the class was told that it was a group project, and that pairs had already been selected and put up on the instructor’s website. Hex held in a groan as he opened a new tab in his web browser, pulling up the site and scrolling down until he could see who he was partnered with.

He paused as he found his name on the list, realising that he had no idea who the person he was partnered with _was_ — Jasper Strauss, presumably one of the other men in the class, but Hex couldn’t pin a face to the name. _There’s only thirty fucking people in the class_ , Hex complained internally, chastising himself for not even bothering to learn a handful of his classmate’s names. Not that it was hard to believe, really.

His thoughts were interrupted as a bag was dropped next to his laptop. He glanced up at the man sliding into the seat beside his, blinking as he recognised him as the asshole he had argued with in class the previous week, over the genetic factors in gender roles known in society. _Fuck my life_.

“You’re Hex?” he asked, though it was more of a statement than a question. Most people probably knew who Hex -the loudest student in most of his classes- was.

"Yeah," the redhead half-sighed, silently cursing the professor for pairing them together. He had probably planned it after their exchange the other day, the bastard. "I guess that means you're Jasper."

Jasper nodded solemnly, pulling his own laptop out of his bag and opening it up to the instructor's website. "We have a month to do the presentation, but the reports are due a bit earlier. The sooner we choose a topic, the better." Jasper said, abruptly changing the subject. He ran his hand along the shaved side of his head (he had an undercut, which Hex had to admit was kind of badass), clicking his tongue as he seemed to debate what they could do the assignment on.

"We should probably avoid talking about innate and learned gender roles," Hex smirked, trying to lighten the mood somewhat. Jasper snorted, and Hex noted that he almost rolled his eyes. Close enough.

"We could discuss whether men or women are more restricted and repressed by gender roles?" Jasper suggested, dark eyes flicking up to settle on Hex. He wrinkled his nose in distaste and shook his head, resting his chin in his palm.

"Seems like an obvious choice, in my opinion. What about the way gender roles have changed over the past centuries? We could tie feminism into it as well."

"That could work," Jasper mumbled, typing something on his laptop before looking back up. "Or we could write about how gender roles affect members of the LGBT community, like you mentioned before? We could touch on same sex couples, misgendering of trans people and a pressure to fit into one gender-specific category or another."

"Yeah, like for nonbinary or genderqueer people." Hex added, his interest piqued by the suggestion. "I like it." he concluded.

"All right." Jasper murmured, typing for another minute before setting his laptop on the desk. "We could probably meet up in the library to do research and email each other the rest."

The rest of their classmates were exchanging contact information, so Hex dug his phone out of his pocket, figuring they should do the same. "Here, put in your email and number." he said, handing over the device after unlocking it.

"We don't need to start working right away, but we should probably meet up after class sometime later in the week." Jasper commented, handing over his own cellphone.

"I'm free on Wednesday and Thursday," Hex replied, though the only day he was notably busy was Friday.

“Thursday’s fine.” Jasper replied, taking his phone back and shoving it into a pocket on his bag.

 

\---

 

Hex rubbed troubledly at his temple with his free hand, dropping his school bag onto the couch on his way to his bedroom. The pain in his head was getting worse, and he wanted to get it over with so he could start on his piece for figure drawing.

He clicked his tongue stud impatiently against his teeth as he set to work; he dug out a jewel-encrusted chalice from the bottom drawer of his nightstand, setting it on his dresser before leaving the room to gather another vital ingredient from the kitchen.

Hex closed his eyes for a moment as the buzzing in the back of his head grew louder, noting with irritation that it had only been a week since he had last performed the ritual.

Always so impatient. It must be where he developed the trait from.

He ripped open the corner of the plastic baggie with his teeth, pouring its contents into the cup before setting the remaining packaging aside. They really let anyone buy blood at the banks intended for vampires, didn’t they? It only made Hex’s life easier, he supposed.

He stared uneasily into the dark liquid filling the metallic cup, the noise in his head working its way to the forefront of his consciousness and making it harder to concentrate. "Let's just get this the fuck over with..." he muttered under his breath, dipping his index finger into the blood and slowly swirling it counter clockwise.

The voices hushed to a soft lull to make way for a larger force inside his mind, and he let his eyes close against the slightly uncomfortable feeling. "Hello, father." he said, his voice flat and expressionless.

"Hex." a low voice responded from the depths of his consciousness, the sound reverberating through his mind like an echo in an empty cave. It sent a strange chill up his spine, and the murmuring sound grew laconically louder in whist excitement.

"You wanted to talk?" It was an accusation, but Hex knew it wouldn't be taken as one.

"I did," his father replied. The chorus of voices grew louder still.

"About anything in particular, or just for shits and giggles?" he asked cheerfully, raking his free hand through his hair.

"You haven't been to the Clan recently," he stated, and Hex felt himself go rigid. The Clan was a cult of devil worshippers, and the redhead avoided visiting them as often as possible.

"I'm assuming that means they're due for a visit?" he ventured. His father growled quietly in response, and Hex held in a long sigh.

He felt the moment the part of his father's consciousness left his head; it left behind faint sense of vertigo, and he braced himself against his dresser until the feeling passed. The remaining voices grew louder again, words unidentifiable among the jumble of languages and volume.

Exhaling shakily, he brought the chalice to his lips and drank deeply, ignoring his gag reflex at the taste of human blood. The voices slowly began to fade until his mind was blank again, and he dipped his head forward as he breathed a sigh of relief.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Despite the fact that Cay had formed a band with Felix and Hex, they were still only practicing and learning songs and had therefore yet to play a gig. As Cay’s only source of income was earned through performing, he had to take it upon himself to keep playing solo until they were able to play together.

Cay actually preferred gigs in smaller restaurants or cafés to playing in bars at three in the morning about sixty percent of the time; they were more intimate, and he could tell that the patrons were paying more attention to his music than drunk couples displaying more affection than was reasonable for a public setting.

As it was, he was setting up near the back of a café tucked away in the better part of the downtown area whose food usually cost too much for him to buy. He hadn’t thought he would need to bring any of his amps, but the owners had asked him to use them and just keep the volume low so the people in the restaurant would be able to hear. Not that he was going to complain.

He set up his guitar first, plucking a few strings to test the sound quality before he moved on to the mic. He quickly hooked the corresponding cables to his amp, biting his lip before doing a quick sound check.

“One, two, three.” he murmured, nodding to himself when the sound came back clearly through the speakers. He positioned himself on the stool he had been provided, pulling his pick out of his pocket and pinching it between his fingers.

He figured that he wouldn’t need to introduce each song, slowly beginning to strum his guitar. The first song he usually played was mostly instrumental with few lyrics, and it gave him a bit of an opportunity to get into the rhythm of playing. His voice came to him naturally, but he had to work harder for the accompanying music to sound nice. He cleared his throat, wetting his lips before beginning to play.

Cay finished the first song with relative ease (it wasn’t his most complicated), and continued to play a few random chords as he debated what to play next. He switched the tune slightly as he started a new song, leaning forward so the microphone would pick up his voice.

“Rain on the window and tears in her eyes, as if it wasn’t enough to see her when she cries. She’s so good at hiding that broken little heart, but not now that she knows that it’s time for you to part.” he sang, continuing to play the guitar simultaneously. He could _feel_ the people in the café listening to him, and it gave him more energy to put into his music. “No more screaming; your voice, it used to be so soft. She keeps saying to stay no matter what the cost.” he continued, glancing down as he played the chords that came before the chorus. “Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye my love. Goodbye, sweet girl, it’s something I can write of. You deserve more than a broken boy who knows he’s just a terror to rid of.”

Cay continued to gently pluck the guitar strings as he finished the song, moving on to his next, and then another after that. It was supposed to be a short gig, so he didn’t play for long; when he was done, he figured he would grab a coffee before he left. He pulled out his phone and quickly texted Ebba, asking if she could come pick him up in a half hour. After she replied, he began to pack up his equipment with practiced ease, leaving the amps and cases where they were for the moment as he headed to the counter to get himself a drink.

He paid for his latte and took a seat at one of the nearby tables, running a hand through his hair as he took a moment to relax. He still felt wired from the vibes the crowd had omitted as he had played his music (even if it had been quiet and acoustic), and he tried not to fidget too noticeably in his seat. When he got home, he would probably write to get rid of his extra energy.

“Excuse me,”

Cay glanced up as a gentle voice drew him out of his thoughts, and his gaze settled on a striking man with white-blond hair and turquoise-coloured eyes. He was wearing a Tiffany blue button-up shirt underneath a double-breasted pea coat, and dark, tight-fitting jeans. He looked flawless and composed, and Cay was caught a little off guard.

He briefly thought of Tai and Asa, who also had brilliantly bright eyes. Perhaps it was a fae trait?

“Sorry, can I help you?” Cay asked, a polite smile on his lips.

“I forgot my bag when I got up to leave,” the man explained, gesturing to a shopping bag tucked beneath the chair Cay was sitting in with lettering printed on the front in a foreign language that Cay didn’t recognise. He noted after a moment that the man had a nice voice; it was soft and somewhat airy, and held his attention in a sort of detached way.

“Oh, sure, sorry,” Cay said, reaching down to scoop up the bag and hand it over to the blond. His hand lingered for a moment too long before he withdrew it, wrapping his fingers around his coffee cup to distract himself.

“Your music was really nice, by the way,” the man told him after a moment of silence, and Cay looked back up at him with a genuine smile on his face.

“Thank you.” he replied, taking a small sip of his latte.

“Do you write the lyrics and music yourself?” the blond asked, shifting the bag into his opposite hand.

“Yeah. I just joined a band, actually, but we’re still learning songs before we start to do gigs.” Cay expanded.

“Is the band acoustic, as well?” the man inquired, tilting his head to the side slightly.

“Generally, no, but we’ll probably be performing a few slow songs per gig. Here,” Cay said, reaching into his pocket to dig out one of his business cards. It read, _Caydon Romanos | Singer/Songwriter | The one with blue hair_ , and had his mobile number listed below the text. He handed it over to the blond man, smiling as he laughed lightly at the joke. “You could give me a call if you wanted information about future gigs.”

The blond seemed to consider this for a moment, tucking the card away in his pocket. “Yeah, I’ll call you,” he responded, a small grin on his lips. “I’m Landon, by the way.” he added, reaching out to shake Cay’s hand.

“Cay.” he answered, though Landon had already seen his name on the card.

“I guess I’ll.. See you around, then?” Landon said, flashing another small smile before turning to leave.

“Seeya.” Cay chirped, sitting back and sipping his latte as he watched the blond leave the café. He hadn’t realised what had really happened until he was left sitting alone at his table and his phone vibrated in his pocket, letting him know that Ebba was on her way to pick him up. He had given Landon his number, even though he had a girlfriend…

 _It was under innocent circumstances_ , he reminded himself, swallowing the last dregs of his coffee. He had merely been promoting his band, and his own solo gigs; the fact that the man was gorgeous really didn’t have anything to do with it.

He tossed his empty cup into the garbage before going to gather his band equipment as best he could on his own, waiting for Ebba to meet him and help him bring everything out to her car. He smiled at her when she entered the café, kissing her lightly on the cheek as she helped carry out one of his amps.

"How did your gig go?" she asked conversationally, pushing her long, dark hair off of her shoulders as they headed out to her car.

"It went well. I made a hundred bucks and gave out one of my business cards." he replied cheerily, loading his gear into the trunk before getting into the passenger's seat.

“Not too bad,” she smiled, sliding into the car as well and putting the keys in the ignition.

"You know, you should come watch me more often." he teased, resting his hand on her thigh as she pulled back on to the main road.

"I would if you didn't play nearly every day." she smirked, glancing over at him before settling her eyes on the traffic.

"Speaking of music-related events," Cay added, leaning back against the worn-in seat of Ebba's Honda, "We have band practice on Monday. Do you think you'd be able to drive me?"

Ebba sucked in a breath, turning onto the street that led to Cay's apartment. "At what time? I have an extra shift on Monday." she replied, pulling up alongside the music store that housed Cay's flat.

"I think it's at five." he told her, pressing his thumb against his lower lip in thought.

"I'll be working then. Could one of the guys give you a drive? Whose house is it at?"

“Felix’s.”

“So couldn’t the one with the strange name drive you? Bridgeport is on the way to Stamford.” Ebba pointed out. Cay laughed lightly and nodded.

“I’ll text Hex and ask if he can swing by on the way down.” he said, undoing his seatbelt before going around to grab his equipment from the trunk. He and Ebba brought the gear into the music store, leaving all but Cay’s guitar in a small room near the back that the owners had let him use to store his equipment.

They headed back out of the shop, around to the side where the entrance to Cay’s flat was; it was a metal ladder that led to a tiny metal balcony and looked as if it had once been a part of a fire escape. The stairs to the second floor inside the building were usually blocked off, and more inconvenient to use, so Cay tended to use the unconventional entrance instead.

Ebba climbed up first and Cay followed, attempting to be careful with his guitar case on the way up. He shut the door behind them and casually set his guitar next to his dresser, kicking off his shoes before collapsing onto his bed. Ebba followed with a laugh, playfully landing on top of him.

He leaned up slightly to press a kiss against her lips, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear before resting back against his pillow. “So, why don’t I cook something to eat, and you can spend the night?”

"Sounds good to me," she replied, ducking her head to press a trail of kisses along his throat as Venus, Cay's Russian Blue, jumped up on the bed and insistently inserted herself between the two, effectively ruining the mood.

 

\---

 

Asa stuck another Pocky stick into his mouth before fixing both of his hands on his controller, chewing absently as he selected the vehicle he would be driving in-game. Felix shifted slightly next to him; they were in Asa’s room, holed up on his bed to play video games while they waited for Tai to return home with Mexican takeout (at Dallas’ request; he said it reminded him of visiting his grandparents, even if it was shittier in comparison to his abuela’s cooking).

“So, you gonna hang around for our band practice tomorrow?” Felix asked offhandedly, and Asa shrugged as he waited for the brunet to pick a car as well.

“Probably, if I have nothing better to do. Why?” he replied, holding back a laugh as Felix chose a motorcycle to use. It would be funnier when he crashed, given the character would go flying off of the bike and into the dirt below.

“Hex has been asking about you,” Felix said casually, and Asa cocked an eyebrow in surprise and bewildered curiosity. “Not like _that_ , I don’t think. He talks about you like you’re fascinating. I think it might be the whole fae thing.”

Asa nodded thoughtfully, considering this. “Do you know if he’s a human, or what?” he asked. Felix himself was one of the only humans living in their house -along with Dallas-, but knew a fair amount about people of other species, particularly faes and vampires, given his best friends were each one of the aforementioned.

“I think so. He hasn’t specified otherwise.” Felix replied distractedly as their race started, but they continued the conversation as they began to play the game.

“What did he say about me, exactly?” Asa asked, whipping around a corner on-screen and narrowly avoiding launching his vehicle off of a cliff.

“He asked if you were in university as well and I told him you weren’t— he’s in third year, like Tai, but he’s your age. I think he said he was turning twenty-two at the end of the month?” Felix relayed, the stick on his controller clicking as he pulled ahead of Asa in the race. The dark-haired fae hummed quietly in response, flicking his tongue against the backing of his labret.

"I guess he waited a bit after high school. I wonder why. He comes from money, doesn't he?"

"How do you figure that?"

"It's a sixth sense that wealthy people can pick out other wealthy people," he joked, making Felix laugh. "He lives in a _house_ by himself rather than an apartment, for one thing. And he's at Yale? That kind of screams 'spoiled rich kid'."

"As if you're not a spoiled rich kid," Felix scoffed affectionately.

"Again, sixth sense." Asa grinned, silently considering the possibility of asking Hex to hang out. He seemed like a cool guy, and the fae knew that they at least had a similar taste in music. "I guess I can stick around for your practice. I'll have to listen to it whether or not I want to, anyway." he teased, smoothly passing Felix's car in-game.

 

\---

 

Hex understood that Felix was laid back and easy to get along with, and thought that, perhaps, that was why his roommates tolerated his reckless and occasionally inconsiderate behaviour. Eryx had made it clear that he didn't like the genre of music their (unnamed) band played, but he still sat quietly on the couch in the basement through their practice with minimal complaint.

Tai hung off to the side, as well, obviously not enjoying the music but attempting to be supportive of his friend. Hex wondered exasperatedly if anyone in the house besides Felix liked alternative music, and thought that if anyone seemed the type, it was Asa. The violet-eyed man hadn't come down to observe, however, and Hex forced himself not to feel disappointed. He had to focus on the practice, anyway.

"Okay, why don't we try Acid one more time?" Hex suggested, still holding onto the idea of slipping original songs in among covers. Cay wrote original songs and so did the redhead, so between the two of them, they would be set for a while at least. Hex thought collaborating might work out, as well.

Cay nodded and Hex strummed the opening riff; the teal-haired man followed suit on the borrowed electric guitar, and the redhead leaned towards the mic as he began to sing. "It was something hot but dangerous, captivating like—"

Hex was startled out of his song as he heard a loud crash from upstairs, and his other bandmates paused as well as Asa came stumbling down the stairs, a thin cigarette pinched between his fingers.

He smiled sheepishly and waved when everyone turned to stare at him, taking a drag from the joint before making his way down the stairs. "Sorry," he apologised quietly, and Hex held back a laugh as the fae sunk down onto the sofa.

“Dude, you’re high as fuck,” Felix smirked, and Asa let out an embarrassed laugh.

“Essentially,” he replied, carding a hand through his feathery hair.

Hex heard Tai let out a faint sigh, and turned to see him looking pointedly at his cousin. Asa’s eyes dropped to the floor, but he took another determined inhale of his cigarette, slowly blowing the smoke out between his lips. The redhead pursed his lips in thought for a moment, absently passing his guitar pick between his fingers. “Okay, should we try again for real?” he asked, looking at his bandmates for confirmation, and nodding when they were ready to play.

He watched Eryx and Asa on the couch as they performed, trying not to smirk as the violet-eyed man gradually curled up against the blond with his head resting on his shoulder. Eryx glanced down when he felt Asa leaning against him, faintly rolling his eyes, but he didn't tell him to move. He had a small smile on his face.

Hex held the last note of the song as the feedback from the amps slowly died down, grinning at his bandmates as he quickly adjusted the position of the mic. “Should we keep going?” he asked, pulling his phone out of his pocket to check the time. They had been practicing for two hours, but Hex was planning to stay for at least another hour.

“Can I just go grab a drink first?” Cay replied, carefully slipping off the guitar that Hex had lent him.

“There’s a bunch of crap in the fridge. I think Dallas is in the kitchen, anyway, so he can get you something if you can’t find anything.” Felix told him, and he slowly nodded before heading upstairs.

“You guys are sounding good so far,” Tai told them with a smile, and Hex returned it gratefully.

“I’m glad. Cay hasn’t really used an electric guitar much, but it’s not too different from acoustic other than the sound.” the redhead replied, setting aside his own guitar for the moment and tucking his pick into his pocket. He pulled an elastic off of his wrist and scraped his hair back into a low, short ponytail at the base of his neck.

“Have you guys come up with a name for the band yet?” Asa interjected from his place on the couch, moving slightly closer to poor Eryx, who was pressed up against the arm of the sofa.

Felix and Hex shook their heads in unison, and Hex bit back a smirk as Asa narrowed his eyes in thought. “What about, like… _Subarashī_. What’s the English word for it?” he asked around a fit of giggles. Tai snorted from beside them, and Hex turned to look at him curiously.

“It means ‘fabulous’,” he explained with a grin, and Hex let out a laugh of delight. He hadn’t know Tai had spoken Japanese, anyhow.

“Hex is the only gay one in the group, I think,” Felix pointed out, playfully poking the redhead’s bicep. Hex swatted him away, sticking out his tongue and feeling his stud brush against his upper lip.

“You’re close enough, Felix,” he retorted, and the brunet let out a small whoop of laughter.

After a few more minutes of banter, Cay wandered back downstairs with a glass of water in hand, and Dallas followed behind with a plate of what looked like sopaipillas in hand. Hex’s expression brightened slightly; his abuelita had made them often when he was growing up and he was still quite fond of them, even as an adult. Not that he acted like an adult, but those were mere details in the grand scheme of things.

“I, um… Made snacks.” Dallas muttered, not meeting the eyes of anyone as he took a seat next to Asa on the couch. The fae looked thrilled, throwing an arm around the teenager’s shoulders and drawing him to his side.

“What are they?” he asked, eyeing the pastries with cautious interest.

“Sopaipillas.” Hex and Dallas answered in unison, and the younger boy looked curiously at the redhead.

“Nostalgic,” Hex commented, moving to lean against the arm of the couch and picking up one of the sopaipillas before taking a bite. “Used to eat them all the time as a kid.”

“You’re Mexican?” Dallas asked incredulously. “But you’re…”

“White as hell and a ginger? I get that a lot,” he laughed buoyantly, waving off the teenager. “My mother was adopted, her parents are Mexican. I was born in Mexico City and lived there until I was four.” He couldn’t help but smile at the way Dallas’ face lit up when he talked about his heritage.

“My family is from Guadalupe,” he replied with the faintest of smiles; Hex noted that it was the most contented he had ever seen the younger boy. “Moved to the States when I was nine.”

“Ah, _tu español debe ser mejor que el mío_ ,” Hex said, and smirked at the way Dallas seemed to relax when he spoke Spanish. It must have been his first language growing up; he wondered if it had been the only language spoken at home as a kid.

“ _Parece que sÍ que puedes_ ,” Dallas replied, and Hex laughed in turn.

“ _Whoa_ ,” Asa suddenly interjected, turning away from Eryx so he could latch onto Dallas with both arms. “I didn’t know you could speak Spanish! Say something again!” he commanded, staring at Dallas with as much focus as it seemed he could muster. One of the corners of Dallas’ mouth turned up as he tried to suppress a smirk, sitting up straighter and looking Asa in the eyes.

“ _Te pones tonto estando ciego_ ,” he told the fae, but Asa only beamed back at him. Hex held his hand up to his mouth to try and contain a cackle.

“Here, here,” Asa suddenly said, offering the cigarette to Hex and reaching for the half-eaten sopaipilla. “Trade you. I’ve never had one of these before.”

The redhead smirked but obliged, pinching the joint between his fingers as he handed the pastry over to the violet-eyed man. Munchies, maybe? He seemed eager to try the dessert, anyway. Maybe it was just because Dallas had made it and Asa worshipped the ground the teenager walked on. Or, it seemed that way most of the time.

Hex watched as Asa happily munched on the sopaipilla and Dallas looked at him in affectionate amusement, and then glanced down at the cigarette in his hands. He figured he might as well try it -Asa seemed to be enjoying himself enough-, whatever _it_ was.

He brought the joint to his lips and inhaled deeply— whatever it happened to be, it was strong as hell, and he smirked faintly as he watched the blue-grey smoke rise when he blew it out in a long puff of air.

Asa released Dallas and moved to lean back against Eryx again, happily munching on the pastry as Hex took another drag from the cigarette. “Good, right?” he said and Hex nodded, blowing out another stream of smoke through his teeth.

“The fuck is it, anyway?”

“Fae drugs,” he smirked, tilting his head back to rest on Eryx’s shoulder. “Oh, hey.” he said, as if just noticing the blond he was practically sprawled across.

“Hello.” Eryx replied, a little testily. Hex just smirked, taking a pull from the joint. His head was already feeling fuzzy; he’d never tried fae drugs (or had really been aware of their existence, though it did make sense), and he was quickly catching up to Asa.

Cay, who had been talking to Felix and Tai for the past few minutes, just seemed to notice that Hex had begun smoking whatever it was Asa had brought down from his room. “Dude, you’re my ride, don’t get high on me!” he protested, and Hex pursed his lips as he considered it.

“I think I’m already there,” he said, to which Cay groaned loudly. Asa giggled and popped the rest of the sopaipilla into his mouth.

“It’s fine, I can drive you,” Felix interjected, and Cay seemed to relax a little at that. “I’m taking your car.” he added, which was directed at Asa, who waved him off and turned his head to bury his face against Eryx's shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations for the Spanish bits:  
> 1) "Ah, your Spanish must be better than mine"  
> 2) "You seem capable"  
> 3) "You're stupid when you're high"  
> Thanks for reading!  
> PS - Happy birthday, Mick! Thank you for supporting me in all my writing endeavours :)


	5. Chapter 5

It was around three in the afternoon when Dallas finally heard Asa’s sluggish footsteps fall against wooden steps as he lazily descended the stairs (he was so skinny, how could he walk so heavily?), and the teenager looked up from where he was doing the dishes as the fae hobbled into the kitchen.

“We have a dishwasher, you know.” Was all he said, running a hand through his dishevelled hair as he flicked on the coffee machine with a yawn.

“I was bored.” Dallas countered evenly, pulling the drain stopper and drying off his soapy hands. He looked in the older man’s direction before pointedly tapping the edge of a plate piled with croissants sitting on the counter. Asa obligingly took one, moving to search the fridge for a jar of jam to accompany the pastry.

“You really didn’t have anything better to do than clean? You could’ve gone upstairs and grabbed my laptop or something.” Asa said, sitting down at the table with his breakfast (lunch?) as he waited for his coffee to brew.

“I like cleaning.” Dallas muttered, wiping off the counter with a towel before moving to sit at the table as well. Asa merely waved his hand dismissively, rubbing tiredly at his eyes before moving to scoop some jam onto his plate. “Besides,” he added, finding particular interest in a small scuff near the baseboard of the kitchen entryway. “I have a friend coming over for dinner. I didn’t want the house to be messy.”

Asa looked up from the mess he was making on his plate, arching one eyebrow in interest as he looked over the teenager sitting across from him. “Yeah? Anyone I know?” he asked, despite the fact that he didn’t know any of Dallas’ old friends. The brunet never spoke of anyone from his past.

“His name’s Mitchell.” Dallas told him, still not meeting his eyes as he looked around the kitchen. “Knew him in high school. We used to hang out on weekends and stuff because of mutual friends.” he added. Friends you no longer talk to, he reminded himself bitterly.

“Sounds cute,” Asa smirked, bringing a piece of croissant to his lips. “Is he your boyfriend?”

Dallas finally looked up, shooting daggers at Asa as he got up from the table. “No.” he said, grabbing a mug from the cabinet and pouring out a cupful of coffee from the pot. “He’s straight. And he doesn’t know that.. That I’m..”

“Gay?”

“Yeah.” Dallas huffed, spooning sugar into the mug before retrieving the cream from the fridge.

"I presume you don't want me to bring it up around him?"

Dallas grunted softly in affirmation, handing Asa his coffee before heading out of the kitchen to grab the vacuum from the hallway closet.

"You put too much sugar in this on purpose, you little shit," Asa called after him, and the teen laughed lightly to himself as he dragged the appliance into the living room. He couldn't ever say that he wasn't passive aggressive.

 

\---

  
Dallas had to admit to himself that he was at least a little bit nervous about how the evening would proceed. He wasn’t used to social situations, that was all. He hadn’t hung out with Mitchell much since high school, or spent much time with any friends, for that matter. It was Mitchell who had suggested they hang out in the first place, when they met at the mall to get yogurt together. His anxiety wasn’t misplaced, he decided, though it didn’t mean he could push down the nerves and butterflies he felt swirling in his stomach.

He had started on dinner already, given it was getting close to seven o’clock, but Mitchell had messaged him on Facebook a few minutes before he left, and it was only a ten minute drive between the aforementioned boy’s apartment and their house.

Dallas was making Japanese beef stir fry, pointedly without Asa’s help, because he was nearly nineteen years old and didn’t want Mitchell to think that he couldn’t even handle cooking for himself (which he couldn’t, but that was beside the point). He wasn’t going to mess it up, for once.

He didn’t quite know why, because he knew he was a great baker, but he couldn’t ever properly cook a meal without burning, undercooking or ruining it in some other ridiculous fashion. Asa made fun of him constantly, saying it was the flaw in his otherwise perfect housewife-worthy set of skills. If he hadn’t been so close to Asa, he probably would have glowered and never spoken to him again. Unfortunately, he lived in Asa’s house, and couldn’t really get by without speaking to him on a fairly regular basis.

“You look hella nervous,” Asa commented airily, leaning against the counter as he watched Dallas prepare the ingredients he would need to make their dinner. “Are you sure you don’t wanna bang this guy?”

Dallas kicked at his shins and Asa let out a bark of laughter.

“I’m just not very social, okay?” the brunet defended, giving one last kick for good measure before returning to chopping up mushrooms and red peppers. “Are Tai and Felix sticking around for dinner?” he added quickly, eager to change the conversation. Tai also happened to be on a school recess until the 27th, so he had been around more than he usually was.

“Should be,” Asa replied distractedly, a smug look still lingering on his face. “They might just take their food upstairs. Tai’s trying to get ahead on his assignments over the break.”

Dallas nodded, grateful that he might not have to deal with everyone teasing him about Mitchell at once. Not that Tai would, but Felix would definitely join in if he saw Asa doing it. “And Eryx?” he added, though the vampire didn’t usually eat with all of them. Apparently, food got a little boring after a hundred and eighty years.

“He said he was gonna go out to the blood bank, but he’s still hanging around for now.”

"M'kay," Dallas hummed, grabbing a pot from the cupboard and filling it with water to boil on the stove. “Don’t answer the door when Mitchell comes, all right? I’ll get it.”

“No promises,” Asa sing-songed, turning on his heel and lazily walking out of the room. Dallas resisted the urge to roll his eyes, moving to grab a pan and oil to begin to cook the meat for the stir fry.

The brunet had just set the noodles to cook and the meat to fry when the doorbell rang, and he quickly dried his hands before scrambling to get the door before Asa could do so instead and embarrass the teenager.

He squawked quietly in indignation as he saw Asa waiting by the door, but he thankfully hadn’t opened it to let Mitchell inside the house. He pushed the older boy out of the way, ignoring his pointed laughter, and opened the door to (unsurprisingly) find Mitchell waiting in the doorway with a small smile painted on his face. Everything about him seemed effortlessly relaxed, casual— he wore light jeans, a thin fall jacket over a baseball tee, and had changed the gauges in his ears since the last time Dallas had seen him. He looked… Nice, the brunet decided. Was it strange that he suddenly felt self-conscious of the way he looked in Mitchell’s eyes?

"Hey, man," Mitchell said, grinning in a way that showed throughout the entirety of his face. Dallas smiled back, albeit a little more timidly, and stepped back to allow the other teen to come into the house.

"Hey," he replied, waiting for Mitchell to toe off his shoes and shrug off his jacket before continuing. “Here, I’ll hang that up.” he offered, taking Mitchell’s jacket before shuffling down the hall to the closet. The other boy followed obediently, distractedly looking around the house as he did so.

“Wow, your house is really big,” he said politely, smiling as Dallas turned back around to face him.

“Yeah, there’s five of us, so,” Dallas answered intelligently, scuffing his socked feet against the hardwood floor of the hallway. He looked up when he heard someone clear their throat, shooting Asa a look when he realised it had been him. He was still lingering in the doorway, very obviously waiting to be introduced to their guest. When Dallas didn't provide an immediate segue, however, Asa went on without preface.

“Hi! You’re Mitchell, right? I’m one of Dallas’ roommates,” Asa chirped, extending his hand to shake. Dallas was mildly mortified by Asa’s forwardness, but Mitchell didn’t seem bothered by the abruptness in the slightest.

"Yeah, that's me," Mitchell replied with a laugh, shaking the proffered hand and looking to Dallas for further introduction.

Oh. Right.

"Um, this is Asa," Dallas explained, gesturing vaguely to the violet-eyed man. Asa raised an eyebrow in amusement, folding his arms across his chest when he had retracted his hand from Mitchell's grip. “The other guys are probably hanging around somewhere. I’m not sure if they’ll be eating with us or what.” he added, biting his lip as he glanced in the direction of the stairs.

“No worries,” Mitchell replied easily, still comfortably looking around the room as Dallas fidgeted beside him, trying to decide what they should do to occupy themselves for the time being.

"Here, why don't I show you around?" Dallas suggested, waving his hand in the direction of the stairs leading to the basement. “My bedroom’s down there, anyway,” he added quietly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Yeah, sure, sounds good.” Mitchell smiled, making Dallas feel a little more at ease.

“It’s actually pretty nice in the basement,” Dallas said as they descended the stairs, the hardwood cool against his bare feet. “If I just want some alone time I can hang out in my room. No one really comes down here unless Felix’s band is rehearsing.”

“So, I’m assuming you spend a fair amount of time down here?” Mitchell replied, a teasing tone to his voice.

“You’re so funny,” Dallas huffed, finally beginning to relax. It had been months since he had spoken with Mitchell, let alone seen him in person, and the other boy had no idea why Dallas had gone missing in the first place.

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to spend time alone,” Mitchell conceded, following after Dallas as they stepped into the ladder's room.

“It’s a bit of a change since high school, anyway.”

During his early-to-mid teenage years, Dallas had at least attempted to be social, mostly with people that he knew from school. He’d been part of a relatively large group where no one was particularly close— Mitchell had also been a part of the group, and they had talked as often as Dallas had talked to any of the other teens. Mitchell been one of the nicest in the group, Dallas thought, and he had considered Mitchell to be the closest thing to a proper friend he'd had at the time.

“Definitely,” Mitchell replied sympathetically, looking curiously around Dallas’ room. “You keep it pretty neat in here, huh?”

Dallas assumed he was referencing the lack of personal belongings or decorations. The walls were plain white along with the bedsheets and comforter, and there were no real indications of personality to the room aside from a few books on the shelf in the corner and Dallas’ clothes hanging in the closet.

“Yeah, I guess,” he replied somewhat awkwardly, chewing his lip as he sat down at the edge of his mattress. “I kind of like it. It's simple and clean.”

Mitchell nodded thoughtfully, nonjudgemental, and Dallas couldn't help feeling a little choked up.

“Maybe next time I swing by I’ll bring something to liven it up, anyway,” Mitchell teased with a warm smile. “Just maybe make it a bit homier for you.”

Dallas was about to reply when a call from upstairs cut him off, and he felt his heart jump into his throat.

“Dallas, your food is burning! Ah, shit, can you come help with this?” Asa called, followed by the sound of clattering dishes. Dallas sprang to his feet, looking to Mitchell with a look of alarm on his face.

“Be right back,” he said quickly, barely registering the look of confusion and amusement on Mitchell’s face before he dashed upstairs to help Asa with the mess.

“Dal, you can't leave food unattended on a stove, shit,” Asa groaned as soon as Dallas entered the kitchen, and the younger boy felt his face heat up as he flicked off the element and looked to the pan of charred meat and the pot of blackened noodles. “Your cooking privileges have officially been revoked.”

Dallas sighed and ran a hand through his hair, chewing forcefully on his lip as he thought. He took the pan from Asa and grabbed the spatula off the counter, beginning to scrape the burnt meat into the garbage.

“Dal, don't worry about it now. I can wash the dishes. Why don't you order takeout with Mitchell for everyone?” Asa suggested gently, grabbing a scraper from the kitchen drawer picking up the pot and working to remove the layer of burnt noodles off the metal.

Dallas nodded, his face still flushed with embarrassment. “Yeah, all right..” he mumbled, grabbing the kitchen phone from its stand before quickly retreating back to the basement.

He shut the door behind him as he entered his room, leaning back against the wood and meekly looking at Mitchell, who was sitting on his bed. Mitchell raised an eyebrow at Dallas questioningly, and the brunet sighed heavily. “Do you like Chinese?”

  
After the food had arrived and everyone had taken the amount that they wanted, Mitchell and Dallas returned to the basement and settled on the couch to eat. Dallas absently flicked on the TV for background noise before sitting down, quietly but contentedly beginning to eat.

“So, um, the next time we get together for dinner should I cook?” Mitchell asked, holding back laughter. Dallas glowered but didn't respond verbally, scooping rice into his mouth and chewing resentfully. Mitchell cackled loudly, bumping his shoulder against Dallas’ playfully. “I'm just teasing. I thought you were really good at cooking?”

“Baking.” Dallas corrected grudgingly, shooting Mitchell another look before shovelling more food into his mouth. “They're different.”

“Whatever you say,” Mitchell chuckled, but Dallas knew not to take true offence. Mitchell genuinely was a nice guy. He had been since high school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it sure has been a long time.


	6. Chapter 6

Cay pulled his jacket a little tighter as he headed across the street, slowly trying to detangle the strange knotted feeling that twisted his stomach. He didn't know why he felt guilty. He was meeting up with Landon as a friend to get drinks and discuss music; it was purely platonic, so there was no reason for him to feel as scummy as he did. Ebba had seemed really happy that he was going out with a friend. He needed to _relax_.

He was hit by a wave of warm air as he pushed open the door to the bar, running a hand through his hair as he stepped inside. The lounge was fairly busy and loud, and there was indie rock music playing faintly in the background for atmosphere. Cay slowly scanned the room, spotting Landon sitting at a table at the far side of the bar. He was wearing a mint green t-shirt and dark jeans, and Cay suddenly felt like his own outfit was severely antiquated in comparison.

“Cay!” Landon greeted cheerfully once he spotted the other man, and Cay offered a small smile as he sat down at the table with him. Landon already had a half-empty beer in front of him, and Cay silently wondered how long he had been waiting.

“Hey. You haven't been here too long, have you?”

“Hm? Oh, no, not at all. Just got here a few minutes ago and grabbed a drink.” Landon replied, ever-polite and lively.

Cay nodded slightly, getting the feeling that Landon might be under exaggerating, but turned to scope out the bar nevertheless. “I’m just gonna grab a drink, too. I’ll be back in a second.” he said with a faint smile. He returned to the table with a beer for himself, sitting down across from Landon with a smile.

“Did you have any good gigs this week?” Landon asked conversationally, taking a sip of his own drink.

“I had a good one on Tuesday night, actually. It was in that little bar downtown that has live music most of the time.. Well, anyway, they were doing an acoustic night, and I played a good set.”

“That’s exciting! I'm sure you sounded great.”

Cay laughed lightheartedly, nursing his beer. “I had a good time, and it pays the bills.”

“It must be nice to be so passionate about your job,” Landon commented pensively, tapping his fingers on the side of his bottle.

“Are you not passionate about your job?” Cay inquired, giving the blond a curious look. He was unsure of what Landon actually did; it hadn’t been brought up in any of their previous conversations.

“No, I am, but.. It seems different from the way that you talk about what you do. I’m an environmental paralegal, which is great, but it’s just work. You create music, which just seems like so much more than what I do.”

Cay raised his eyebrows in surprise; it was impressive that someone so young already had such a good job under their belt. “I’m willing to bet that you make triple what I make as your annual salary, though,” Cay countered teasingly. “And you’re definitely not doing less than I am. We just happen to have two very different lifestyles.”

Landon laughed, bemused, and Cay found himself relaxing quickly. Why had he been so anxious in the first place? Everything was going smoothly.

“I suppose you’re right,” Landon replied playfully, flashing a toothy grin. He downed the rest of his beer before setting the empty decanter on the table, running a finger around the lip of the bottle. “So, whereabouts are you living in town?” Landon asked, changing the topic of conversation.

“Right downtown, actually,” Cay explained casually. “I live in an apartment above a music store. The rent is cheap and, you know, I love music,” he chuckled, feeling warm as Landon laughed along with him.

“Here, do you want another beer? I’m gonna go get another for myself.” Landon offered, getting up from his seat.

“That would be great, thanks,” Cay said, watching Landon walk to the bar. “I’ll buy the next round.”

 

\---

 

Hex jogged in place as he came to a red light, glad that the weather hadn’t gotten quite so cold that it hurt his lungs to be exercising outdoors. When the light changed, he started off across the street, the soles of his shoes bouncing easily along the pavement. The weather was actually fairly nice that day; the sun was shining brightly, highlighting the reds and oranges adorning the trees.

It was early in the evening, and Hex had decided to go for a jog before grabbing something to eat and getting started on his assignments. Classes didn’t resume until Monday, but Hex had put off all of his work during the recess and needed to get it done by the end of the weekend.

He started slightly as his phone began vibrating in his pocket, digging it out and checking who was

calling before frowning in puzzlement as he saw Jasper’s name displayed on the screen.

“Who actually calls anyone anymore?” Hex said as a greeting, the phone pressed to his ear with one hand as he continued to jog.

“You wouldn’t answer my texts,” Jasper replied defensively, and Hex liked the fact that they smoothly avoided unnecessary hellos and small talk.

“I’m kind of busy right now,” Hex half-laughed, turning the corner and beginning to head back the way he had come from. He had been jogging for a half hour already, anyway.

“I can hear that. What are you even doing?”

“Jogging,” Hex answered simply, wishing Jasper would hurry up and explain why he had called so they could get off the phone. “What did you need?”

“I was gonna suggest that we meet up and do some more work on the project for genders, but if you’re busy we could reschedule…” Jasper trailed off, and Hex rolled his eyes slightly to himself.

“Nah, it works if you wanna come over tonight. Give me, like, two hours to get ready and shit. I’ll text you my address in five.”

“Okay, no problem. See you in a bit.”

Hex hung up his phone and stuffed it back into his pocket, picking up his pace slightly now that he was no longer distracted by having to converse with Jasper. He was mildly irritated that he couldn’t take his time on the way home, but figured returning home quickly and showering was probably a better idea than wasting his time.

 

\---

 

After showering, Hex quickly changed into a pair of clean clothes and pulled his hair back into a damp ponytail before grabbing his laptop and trekking to the basement. He wondered whether Jasper or the pizza would arrive at first, and sincerely hoped that it would be the delivery boy. He sunk down onto the couch with a sigh, resting his feet on the coffee table as he opened his computer. He had hastily bookmarked a few more pages on their subject while doing research the previous week, and pulled them up to begin to pull relevant information for their presentation.

Luckily for him, the pizza did arrive before Jasper did, and after curling back up in the basement with his dinner, he got to work. He didn’t hear the doorbell ring again until he was a quarter through his pizza and opening his second can of beer, and he lazily pushed off the couch and headed upstairs to let the other man into the house.

“Hey,” Hex greeted casually, looking Jasper up and down as he stepped into the foyer. He looked dangerous in all-black, wearing a leather jacket, dark jeans and combat boots to complete the look. Hex found it somewhat amusing; he couldn’t tell if Jasper was trying too hard, or if he genuinely enjoyed appearing like a cross between a punk rocker and a biker. Hex couldn’t deny that he did pull the look off quite well, however.

“Hey,” Jasper replied monotonously, crouching down to untie his boots and haphazardly kicking them off.

“I already started digging through some articles to try and get some citations,” Hex explained, waiting for Jasper to straighten and pick up his bag before heading in the direction of the basement. “I also have pizza if you want any.” he added somewhat regretfully.

“I actually just ate, but thank you,” Jasper replied, following Hex into the basement. “Shit, you have a lot of instruments.”

Hex shrugged, sitting cross-legged on the couch and pulling his computer into his lap. His keyboard was in the basement as well as his two electric guitars, but one of his acoustic guitars was in the livingroom, and the other was in his bedroom. “Hoping to get more, in all honesty.” he answered, grabbing his beer off of the table and taking a long drink before focussing on his laptop screen. “Anyway, have you found anything relevant for the presentation?”

“I took out a few books from the library that I definitely think we could use,” Jasper explained, digging through his bookbag and procuring the aforementioned books. “I used them on my paper, so we should be able to use them for the presentation as well… Have you started the paper yet?”

Hex snorted derisively, taking a large gulp of beer before shaking his head. “Not quite yet.”

“You realise it’s due at the end of the week?” Jasper said, but didn’t press the subject. He opened one of the books and began flipping through it until he reached a page marked by a fluorescent sticky note. Hex observed that Jasper was much more prepared than he was. It wasn’t as if he was a bad student, per se, he just… Procrastinated. A lot. He still got good marks, so it wasn’t necessarily detrimental to his education.

“Did you want to divide it by subtopics, then? We can go based on what we talk about in our individual papers.” Hex suggested, trying to be moderately helpful. Even though he was a massive procrastinator, he didn’t want them to do poorly on the presentation.

“That’s probably the best way to organise it,” Jasper confirmed, flipping through the pages of his textbook. “I mentioned gender roles in same-sex relationships, ‘passing’ in the trans community, and the focus on binaries and gender expectations in regards to gender identity.”  he explained, reading bullet points off a sticky note stuck to the top of a textbook page.

“I’ll probably talk about similar stuff,” Hex answered, flicking his tongue stud against the inside of his teeth as he typed up the point Jasper had listed in a new document. “I’ll make sure they’re not the same, though. Anyway, did you want to add any video or other media to the presentation?”

 

\---

 

Asa looked up from watering his hydrangeas as he heard the back door slide open, waving as he watched Dallas slowly step into the backyard.

“Can we go to the grocery store?” Dallas asked, glancing down at his socked feet in slight irritation before walking across the grass anyway. “I need maple syrup and eggs.” He paused. “And lemons.”

“You need maple syrup, eggs, and lemons?” Asa repeated incredulously, raising an eyebrow as he continued to water the flowers.

“I’m baking a pound cake.”

“Why?” Asa half-laughed, glancing over his shoulder at the younger boy. He wasn’t especially surprised by the divulgence, however.

“I bake when I’m stressed.”

“Why are you stressed?”

Dallas shrugged. “I’m always stressed.”

Asa hummed in agreement, setting down the hose. Dallas did bake an awful lot. “Yeah, come on. I’ll drive you.”

They headed out to Asa’s Hyundai after Dallas grabbed his sneakers, sliding into the car and heading off to the grocery store. It was a short car ride, as the store was only down the street from their house, and when they pulled into the parking lot, Asa dug his wallet out of his pocket to give to Dallas.

“There’s probably enough cash in there, or you can use my debit,” he told the younger boy, who nodded appreciatively.

“Thanks. I should only be a minute.”

The door shut loudly as Dallas exited the car, and Asa sunk down into his seat, settling back against the headrest. He thumbed absently through his phone, flicking his tongue against the backing of his labret as he read the titles of various articles on his news feed with disinterest.

 _At least you’re getting out for a minute_ , he reasoned with himself. _And you’ll get to eat the... Thing Dallas is making later._

He was about to dig through the centre console of the car to see if he or Felix had left a pair of headphones lying around when his phone vibrated in his lap, and he glanced down to see who had sent him a message.

It was from Hex, which didn’t strike him as particularly unusual. Felix had passed on Asa’s number to the redhead, and they had been texting each other for around a week.

 

 

> From: Hex Delacruz
> 
> 4:47pm
> 
> Hey man! I just wanted to see if you were free on Halloween. A couple of friends and I are going out for drinks and I wanted to see if you wanted to come with :) I’ve been meaning to ask Dallas if he wanted to come to the Día de los Muertos parade on Nov 1st too lol so you two could stay over at my place if you wanted

 

Asa was a little surprised by the invitation, but not at all turned off by the idea. He generally went out with the same crowd— old friends from when he had first moved to the States, whom he loved to death, but always did the same thing when they went out. A change of pace sounded… Strangely appealing.

 

 

> To: Hex Delacruz
> 
> 4:50pm
> 
> Yeah man I’m down. I’ll talk to Dallas and let you know what he says

 

 

> From: Hex Delacruz
> 
> 4:52pm
> 
> Aiight nice!! I’ll text you later with more details haha. Still figuring it out with the other guys

  
Asa smiled faintly, exiting out of the messages and resting his phone on his leg. It seemed as if he and Hex really did have a lot in common.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ay, it didn't take me a year to update this time.  
> It's also 4am as I post this which is extremely predictable on my part. I'll try to mix it up next time.
> 
> Anyway, uni's a bitch, but Chloe's gonna whip my writing ass into shape.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


	7. Chapter 7

“Did you pack everything you’ll need?”

“Yes. You sound like my mom, it’s weirding me out.”

“I don’t wanna have to turn around halfway to Hex’s house because you forgot your toothbrush or something,” Asa scoffed, not enjoying being compared to a middle-aged woman.

“You still sound like my mom.”

“Asshole,” Asa accused, playfully bumping into the teen as he quickly made his way back upstairs to grab his own bag.

He was strangely excited to go out with Hex and his friends, given he went out quite regularly as it was. He supposed it was because they were going to a bar he had never been to with people he hadn’t met, but he also couldn’t shake the feeling of being pleased that he got to spend time with Hex.

After grabbing his backpack from his doorway and snagging his wallet and keys off of his dresser, he made his way back downstairs, hoping that Dallas had finished packing all of his crap. Luckily, the teen was waiting by the door when Asa returned to the main floor, his own bag resting on the floor by his feet.

“Ready to go?” Asa asked, grinning at the younger boy. He could tell Dallas was excited to go out with Hex, even though he showed it in atypical ways.

“Ready to go.” Dallas confirmed, lifting his bag off of the floor and slinging it over his shoulder.

“Just so we’re clear, you’re not allowed to complain about the music I play in the car,” Asa chirped quickly as they headed out the front door, and Dallas huffed quietly in response. “My music is good,” he added sourly, shooting the teen a sidelong glance.

“ _ Some _ of it,” Dallas muttered, laughing breathily as Asa swatted at him before getting into the car.

 

\---

 

The ride to Hex’s place in New Haven was a fifty minute drive on a good day, but with the Friday night traffic, it took over an hour to reach their destination. Asa lent Dallas his phone to mess around with and cranked up his music, trying to stay sane among the influx of cars.

He was relieved when they finally pulled into Hex’s driveway behind the redhead’s Jeep, and Dallas seemed placated when Asa cut the engine, silencing the loud music that had been previously blaring from the speakers.

“Talking to Mitchell?” Asa asked teasingly as he glanced down at his phone in the teen’s hands. Dallas held it protectively against his chest with a muttered “no”, which clearly meant that he was. The fae cackled as he exited the car, grabbing his bag from the trunk and waiting for Dallas to do the same before locking the car.

“Hey guys,” Hex grinned as he answered the door with a beer in hand, stretching out the syllables in both of the words. “Glad you made it.”

Asa snorted, entering the house and waiting for Dallas to follow. “As if we wouldn’t have made it here,” he chuckled. “It’s New Haven, not Detroit, you dork.”

“I’ll have you know I live in a very dangerous neighbourhood,” Hex replied, sarcasm lacing his words.

“I think the most dangerous part about this neighbourhood is the high school kids that probably smoke weed in the park down the street at night, which is to say, not very dangerous,”

“At least  _ I  _ smoke weed in my basement like a damn adult,” Hex muttered, and Asa had to bite his lip to hold back laughter. “And how are you doing, man?” This was directed at Dallas, but it took him a moment to realise he was being spoken to.

“Can’t complain,” he answered flatly, offering a small, slightly strained smile. Asa knew social situations made the teen uncomfortable. Hex seemed to notice, but didn’t seem to take offense.

“That’s good to hear,” the redhead smiled back, leading them in the direction of his living room. “I assumed we’d be pre-drinking before heading out, so,” Hex laughed, gesturing to the beer in his hand. “I’ll grab you something. Dallas, you want a beer?”

Dallas looked startled for a moment, setting his bag on the ground and gingerly sitting down on the couch. “I’m okay, thank you,” he responded politely.

“No worries, man. Let me know if you want anything.” Hex said, and Dallas merely nodded. Asa followed behind Hex as he made his way to the kitchen, because he  _ did _ want a beer.

“Skylar and Merit wanted to meet up around nine at the bar,” Hex said as he handed Asa a Heineken, shutting the fridge behind him. Hex had mentioned over text that a few of his friends were joining them, but Asa hadn’t known their names until then. “Happy Halloween, by the way,”

“Happy Halloween,” Asa chuckled, opening his beer and taking a sip. “It feels kind of anticlimactic since we’re not in costume.”

“I mean, I probably have a pair of cat ears lying around somewhere that you could borrow,” Hex joked, and Asa raised an eyebrow curiously.

“Not sure if I want an explanation on that one.”

“It’d probably be easier if you didn’t ask,” Hex confirmed, ducking back into the living room to grab a bottle from what Asa presumed was his alcohol cabinet.

“I mean, my bracelet has skulls on it,” Asa amended, lifting up his wrist slightly. Bottle of vodka in hand, Hex inspected the piece of jewellery, nodding approvingly.

“And your sweater says the word ‘fuck’ on it,” he pointed out, and Asa laughed amiably. 

“Half of his tops have swear words on them,” Dallas interjected from his spot on the couch.

“What a coincidence. So do mine,” Hex said, smiling at Asa. It felt like something private; a secret told only to those deemed worthy. It made his heart beat a little faster. 

“Dallas, you’re too pure for this world,” Asa sighed, still half-flustered.

“Why does everyone say that?” Dallas grumbled, which made Asa laugh wholeheartedly.

 

\---

 

After a couple of beers and a shot of vodka, Asa was pleasantly tipsy, and Hex didn’t seem to be too far behind him. They agreed to call a cab, and Asa retrieved his phone from Dallas, exchanging it for his laptop.

“There’s food and drinks and shit in the fridge if you want anything. Feel free to watch TV or movies or play games or whatever, and you have both of our numbers.” Hex said to Dallas, who was still comfortably curled up on the couch in the living room.

“Be safe. No boys allowed over while we’re gone!” Asa added, ruffling Dallas’ hair and laughing at the teen’s scandalised expression.

“Asa!” he hissed, shooting the older boy a venomous look.

“I’m just teasing! Be good,” the fae trilled, patting his pockets to make sure he had his wallet and cigarettes before following Hex outside.

The cab ride didn't take too long; Hex lived closer to the bar than Asa had expected, and soon enough, they were entering the building and snagging a table. Hex slid into the seat next to Asa, leaving the opposite side free for his other friends. 

When a waitress approached their table, Hex politely asked for a few more minutes to look through the menu before he and Asa settled into easy conversation.

“I think you'll like Skylar and Merit,” Hex commented as he began to casually flip through one of the menus that was resting on the table. “Skylar is a sweetheart is Merit is very… Alternative.”

“How did you meet them?” Asa asked conversationally, absently tugging at one of his ear studs.

“They go to my school, actually. We were all in the same first year English class and sort of stuck together after that.” Hex explained. “They’re both only twenty-one. It was shitty last year when we couldn’t all go out for drinks before they were of age.”

“I was bummed to find out the drinking age here was higher than in Japan when I first moved,” Asa replied sympathetically, glancing down at the table as Hex’s phone vibrated noisily against it.

“Just telling them where we’re sitting, they’re about to get here,” Hex relayed as he read the message, typing a quick reply that Asa assumed detailed where they were seated in the bar.

As promised, a few minutes later, a pretty girl with shoulder-length purple hair and a boy with brown skin and dreadlocks pulled into a ponytail approached the table with grins on their faces.

“Happy birthday, Hex!” the girl exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Hex from behind and almost hitting him in the face with the gift bag she had hanging from her arm. Asa paled visibly, looking between Hex and his friends. He hadn’t known it was Hex’s birthday; the redhead hadn’t brought it up at all.

“It’s your birthday?” Asa hissed, and Hex shot him an apologetic look.

“Thanks, Merit,” he replied to the girl, hugging her back before getting up to hug Skylar as well.

“Officially twenty-two,” Skylar smirked as he took a seat, placing a neatly wrapped package on the table in front of Hex.

“I’m officially the old friend, huh?” Hex quipped, and Asa admired how easygoing he seemed to be around everyone he spent time with.

“You’re not even a full year older than us,” Merit interjected helpfully, insistently pushing her gift bag towards the redhead. Hex took the not-so-subtle hint, reaching out and plucking the bag off the table.

“You guys didn’t have to get me anything,” he chastised softly, but he had a wide smile on his lips.

“Duh, but we wanted to,” Skylar argued, eagerly watching as Hex removed the tissue paper from the gift bag.

Asa noted that the gifts suited Hex quite well as he unwrapped them: customised guitar picks (one tie dye, one with a marijuana leaf on it, one with a checkered pattern and one with an alien decal) and a bottle of Viniq from Merit as well as two signed fantasy novels Asa had never heard of from Skylar.

“Thank you guys so much, I love the gifts,” Hex said, beaming at his friends. Asa could tell that they were all very close; he tried not to feel like an outsider, reminding himself that Hex had invited him along.

“You’re welcome, my dude,” Merit said, grinning back at the redhead. “You better fucking use one of those picks when you finally do a gig.”

“Cross my heart,” Hex smirked, winking at his friend.

Asa looked up as the waitress approached their table once again, smiling at the quartet.

“Hi, I’m Melanie, I’ll be your server tonight,” she said, re-introducing herself for Skylar and Merit’s sake. “Can I start you guys off with something to drink?”

“Can we get two tequila shots, please?” Asa requested, noting the curious look that Hex gave him.

“No problem,” Melanie replied, scribbling down his order. “Anything for you guys?”

“I’ll have a Coors Light,” Merit answered, looking to Skylar.

“I’ll have a Corona and an order of fries, please.”

Melanie repeated their orders to make sure she had written everything down correctly before leaving their table.

“Corona? What are you, a middle-aged white man?” Merit teased, raising an eyebrow at Skylar.

“God, I wish,” he sighed in response, drawing laughter from the other three. “Wouldn’t life be easier if I was?”

“Hex is that much closer to being a middle-aged white man now,” Merit giggled, brushing her violet bangs out of her eyes.

“Okay, fuck you, I am  _ not _ that old,” Hex retorted, though his voice was light with laughter and lacked ferocity.

“Whatever you say,” Merit sing-songed, biting her lip to hold back a grin. 

Asa knew he was going to enjoy himself that night.

 

\---

 

After having a handful of drinks at the bar (Asa made sure to pay for all of Hex’s as a birthday present), the four decided to switch venues after Merit mentioned a “bangin’ gay bar” that was only a couple of streets away. Asa quickly learned that she was bisexual, and that Skylar was homoromantic asexual. They dropped off Hex's presents in Skylar's car before starting in the direction of the club, figuring it would be easier to walk than to find parking.

“Why is it that most queer people also have a bunch of queer friends?” Asa asked as they carelessly meandered down the street, far past being tipsy.

Hex laughed loudly and pushed his hair out of his eyes, looking over his shoulder at the fae. “Birds of a feather flock together,” he replied, swaying slightly as he continued to walk.

“I mean, technically everyone here likes dick,” Merit commented thoughtfully. “Except, you know, Skylar doesn’t really like to interact with them.”

Skylar snorted, ushering Merit further down the street as she began to look around distractedly. He was the only one who was still relatively sober. “She’s got a point,” he admitted.

“Are we almost there?” Hex interjected suddenly. “I thought you said it wasn’t far!”

“Stop whining, birthday boy,” Merit said unsympathetically, catching up to Hex unsteadily and punching him lightly in the shoulder. “We’ll be there in a few minutes.”

True to her word, the four arrived at the club within the next ten minutes. Asa could tell right away that the bar was much more popular than the first; he could hear loud music blaring without even being inside, and there were bouncers outside checking people before they went in.

“It’s, like, a five dollar cover fee,” Merit informed them as she dug her own wallet out of her pocket, pulling out a bill and her ID.

Asa leaned in close to Hex as the redhead reached into his pocket to do the same, lips nearly brushing the other man’s ear. “I’ll pay for you, don’t worry about it,”

“You sure?” Hex asked dazedly, his eyes glossy with alcohol as he pulled his ID from his wallet.

“Yeah, it’s only five bucks. Plus, it’s your birthday,” Asa said, a small smile forming on his mouth as Hex beamed at him.

“Come on, let’s go!” Hex said excitedly, grabbing Asa by the wrist and pulling him towards the door.

After showing their IDs and paying the cover charge, the quartet headed into the club, the music becoming almost unbearably loud once inside.

Merit dragged Skylar into the crowd almost immediately, and Hex continued to lead Asa, his hand warm around the fae’s wrist. They ended up at the bar and ordered a few more drinks, watching the writhing bodies on the dance floor and trying to find Merit and Skylar among the mass of people.

“Do you wanna dance?” Hex asked, having to nearly shout to be heard over the music. Asa nodded in response, swallowing the last of his drink before following Hex into the crowd.

By that point, Asa was extremely drunk; the room was spinning slightly and he felt pleasantly warm. He didn’t consider himself an exceptionally good dancer, but he was too drunk to give a fuck, and he wanted to do what Hex wanted.

He followed along as the redhead began to move to the overplayed electronic song, trying his best to not make a fool of himself. Hex was tantalising, rolling his body and hips in a way that made Asa’s mouth go dry. He seemed to know he looked good, grinning as he caught the fae staring at him. Before Asa knew what was happening, Hex had turned around, his body pressing against the violet-eyed man’s.

Asa had obviously grinded with people at clubs before, given the amount of time he spent at them, but he hadn’t expected to with Hex. 

He began to move back against the redhead, pressing against Hex as he rolled his own hips. It was electric; every nerve was alight as the two moved together, and Asa wished briefly that the feeling would never end.

Eventually, Hex turned around to face him, linking his arms around his neck as he began to grind against him again.

“Well, this is intimate, huh?” Asa commented, his eyes flicking down to rest on Hex’s lips. The redhead laughed delightedly, eyes dark with intrigue or arousal. Asa couldn’t tell the difference.

  
“That’s one word you could use,” Hex replied, his gaze flicking across Asa’s face. The fae swallowed, trying not to acknowledge the way that Hex was looking at him was beginning to weave its way under his skin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm like 95% sure this is the longest chapter yet.  
> Also, hey! It's been less than a month since the last chapter! Having friends riding my ass to post chapters sure has it's benefits ;)


	8. Chapter 8

At around two in the morning, the group of four decided that it would be best to call it a night and head home. Specifically, Skylar told them that they needed to get their drunk asses home and get some sleep. They somehow made their way back to the first bar unharmed and hopped into Skylar’s car, having been offered a ride back to Hex’s place.

“You guys are literally the best,” Hex proclaimed, leaning heavily against Asa’s shoulder as they sat in the backseat. “Like, this was a great fucking birthday. Might’ve been better if we went trick-or-treating, but whatever.”

“I think it’s frowned upon for twenty-somethings to trick-or-treat,” Merit snorted, turning around in her seat to look drowsily at Hex.

“I’ve never actually been trick-or-treating,” Asa said, looking down at Hex in alarm when he suddenly gripped his arm.

“ _What_?” Hex exclaimed, appalled.

“Well, there’s… There’s no trick-or-treating in Japan, and by the time I moved to the States, I was eighteen,” Asa explained stiltedly, brain fuzzy from the alcohol. “It’s a culture thing.”

“Yeah, they don’t trick-or-treat in Vietnam, either,” Merit chirped, twisting as much as she could with her seatbelt on to look at the boys in the back seat. “When I moved here as a kid I was stoked.”

“You poor, deprived children,” Hex said, sounding heartbroken and devastated until he became occupied by an abrupt but brief fit of hiccoughs.

“I mean,” Asa said, running a hand through his hair messily. “I don’t _feel_ deprived.”

“That’s because you don't know what you've been missing,” Hex said, sadly, patting Asa’s knee sympathetically.

The conversation continued in a similar loop the entire way back to Hex’s, ending with an admission from Asa that, perhaps, he had been deprived due to a lack of trick-or-treating as a child.

“When all the Halloween candy goes on sale in a few days, we can go buy some and you can trick-or-treat at my place,” Hex declared as he grabbed his gift bag off of the seat, opening the car door a few seconds before the car had come to a complete stop.

“Jesus, Hex,” Skylar said, looking over his shoulder to make sure the redhead hadn't fallen out of the car.

“Sorry, sorry,” answered Hex, hand still on the open car door. “Thanks so much for taking me out tonight, guys. It was fucking swell,” he added, a playful smile on his lips. Merit laughed delightedly and Skylar chuckled breathily.

“You’re welcome. Go get some rest. Oh, and remember to drink water!” Skylar replied, and Asa grinned at the parental concern that the dark-haired man showed for Hex.

“Happy birthday, Sexy Hexy!” Merit giggled, far too loud for the confines of Skylar’s humble vehicle.

“Chao, guapa,” Hex said in reply, blowing a kiss before exiting the car with minimal instability. Asa followed the redhead, murmuring a thank you to Skylar and trying not to stumble as his feet hit the pavement.

The two made their way up Hex’s driveway with only some complication, and Hex managed to get the door open after fumbling with his keys for a minute. They locked the door behind them and abandoned their shoes in the entryway, trying to proceed in silence as to not wake Dallas. Asa snagged his backpack as they passed through the living room, and they made it to Hex’s room without much incident.

“Careful not to trip on the guitar,” Hex warned in a hushed voice, setting his keys and wallet down on his dresser after flicking on the light. Asa sat down uncertainly on the edge of Hex’s bed, his head spinning pleasantly as he glanced around the room. “I’m just gonna pee, I’ll be back in a sec.”

Asa hummed in reply, watching Hex duck back out into the hallway before unzipping his bag and digging around for the clean t-shirt he knew he had packed that afternoon. He kicked his jeans off with some difficulty, pulling off his sweater and replacing it with the tee.

Hex’s room was fairly plain; he had a dresser and mirror across from his bed, and an acoustic guitar sitting in its stand beside it. His closet door was slightly ajar, but all Asa could see was clothes and a few pairs of shoes. He only had a few posters and pictures hung up, and his bedside table was relatively empty. _Not much to look at_ , Asa thought glumly.

“Hey,” Hex said as he stepped back into the room, drawing Asa from his reverie. “Nice boxers.”

Asa stuck out his tongue and folded his arms over his chest defensively. “Dark Side of the Moon is a good album, okay?”

“It is,” Hex agreed with a laugh, opening one of the drawers of his dresser and digging around inside it. “Wish I had Pink Floyd boxers.”

“The internet is a wonderful place,” Asa teased as Hex pulled a shirt out of his dresser, prompting the redhead to shoot a look over his shoulder.

“So funny,” he deadpanned, tossing the t-shirt at Asa before beginning to undress. Asa was, unfortunately, extremely drunk, and didn’t really possess the inhibition he usually exhibited. He picked up the shirt that Hex had flung at him and watched distractedly as the redhead undressed, more fixated on his now-visible tattoos than his half-nakedness.

From Asa’s experience, Hex seemed to enjoy wearing tank tops, at least to band practice, so he had caught glimpses of the redhead’s tattoos a fair amount of times, but hadn’t ever seen them in full. As Hex turned around to retrieve the shirt he had previously thrown at the fae, Asa noted that the tattoo that wrapped around Hex’s bicep and extended to the top of his forearm also stretched over the left side of his chest and shoulder blade. It was a dragon, its teeth bared dangerously, its wings spread out over Hex’s pectoral muscle and back.

“How many tattoos do you have?” Asa found himself asking, eyes flicking over Hex’s torso. He noticed that the redhead had undone his jeans.

“Just three,” Hex replied, taking the shirt from Asa, though he didn’t move to put it on.

“Show me?”

Hex tugged his jeans off the rest of the way before sitting down next to Asa, wearing only a pair of black boxer briefs. Asa tried not to stare.

“I have the dragon one,” he started, gesturing vaguely to the left side of his torso. “It took five hours and cost me five hundred bucks, but I think it looks badass,” he chuckled, looking down at his arm. “And I have this snake,” he continued, lifting his arm slightly to expose the right side of his torso. An Aztec-style snake wove its way up his side, coiled and dark. “And this key,” he finished, turning his forearm over to expose his last tattoo.

“Why do you have a tattoo of a snake up your side?” the fae asked out of genuine curiosity.

“Because I’m a fucking snake,” Hex answered, grinning enticingly, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“And the key?” Asa added in a quieter voice.

“For all the secrets I have.”

Asa swallowed, looking down at the exposed inside of Hex’s forearm. The key was long and simplistic with a chain running down its length. “Was this your first one?”

“Mhmm,” Hex hummed. Asa could feel his eyes scanning his face. “Good guess.”

Tentatively, Asa reached out his hand, the tips of his fingers barely brushing against the ink marking Hex’s skin. He was barely breathing, focussed on gauging Hex’s reaction. The redhead curled and uncurled his fingers slowly, but didn’t withdraw his arm.

Asa carefully traced along the tattoo, up towards Hex’s wrist, the base of his palm. The nerves in his fingertips felt electrified; the touch felt _dangerous_.

“How many piercings do you have?” Hex asked, acutely quiet. The waver in his voice caught Asa’s attention. “I just have one,” he added, sticking out his tongue so Asa could see the silver stud that penetrated the muscle.

Asa’s brow creased in concentration as he mentally ran through a checklist of his piercings. “If you count each of my ears separately, four,” he disclosed, watching Hex’s eyes flick between both of his earlobes and his mouth in confusion.

“Four..?” the redhead repeated slowly, frowning. “Where’s the fourth?”

“That,” Asa said, a small smile forming on his lips. “Is _my_ secret.”

“Oh, come on!” Hex protested, and Asa helplessly tried to hold back laughter.

“It’s a _secret_. Now get dressed,” Asa said as he tipped onto his back, poking Hex in the hip with his foot as he shifted backwards on the bed.

“It’s my birthday, you’re supposed to be nice to me,” Hex pouted, though he grabbed the t-shirt from where it had been discarded on the bed and pulled it over his head.

“You didn’t even tell me it was your birthday,” Asa countered, tucking his arms behind his head.

“I didn’t want you to feel weird about coming or feel like you had to get me anything,” Hex mumbled, flopping onto the bed and burying his face in his pillow. “Thanks for all the drinks you bought me, by the way.”

“You’re welcome,” Asa said around a yawn, rolling onto his side to try and get more comfortable. “I hope you had a good time.”

“Mm, I did,” Hex sighed, stretching out his legs before shifting to pull the his sheets over himself. He looked as tired as Asa felt; he could barely keep his eyes open.

After a few minutes of silence, Asa pulled the blankets over himself as well, giving into his fatigue. “Happy birthday, Hex,” he murmured, though he assumed the other man was already asleep.

 

\---

 

When Hex woke up, he immediately regretted not drinking water like Skylar had advised him to. His head throbbed, his throat was sore, and his stomach was knotted uneasily. Inhaling deeply, Hex rolled over, and almost smashed his arm into Asa’s face in the process.

The fae groaned softly in response to the sudden movement, pressing his face into the pillow he was sleeping on. Hex blinked and rubbed tiredly at his eyes, the events of the previous night briefly forgotten in his morning haze. Panic seized in his chest as he realised the implications of why Asa might be in his bed; they were dressed, however, which staved his horror slightly. He let out a slow sigh as he began to remember what had transpired, his sleep-muddled brain slowly springing back to life.

He drew back the covers as carefully as he could, trying not to wake Asa as he gingerly slid out of bed. He grabbed a pair of sweatpants from his dresser and tugged them on, grabbing a pack of cigarettes and a lighter as well before leaving his room.

Dallas was already awake when Hex padded out into the living room, curled up on the couch contentedly watching TV.

“What time is it?” Hex asked, his voice dreadfully scratchy and dry.

“About one-thirty,” Dallas answered, glancing over his shoulder as Hex meandered into the kitchen. Water. He was supposed to drink water.

“Well, shit. When did you get up?”

“At nine,” Dallas said, and Hex shot him a look. What kind of eighteen-year-old woke up at nine on a Saturday?

“Sorry to have kept you waiting,” Hex said guiltily as he poured himself a glass of water and promptly forced himself to drink the whole thing.

“It’s okay,” Dallas replied, not seeming to mind having been left alone for four hours. “I had some cereal. I hope that’s okay,” he added.

“No, no, of course,” Hex said immediately, fishing his cigarettes and lighter out of his pocket and sticking one between his lips. “Here, I’ll make something else for you to eat.”

The rush of nicotine as Hex inhaled through his cigarette made the pounding in his head slightly more bearable, and he opened his fridge cautiously and dug around to see if he could find anything proper to cook. “Does Asa drink coffee?” he inquired, glancing over his shoulder at the teenager.

“Like water,” Dallas said, pushing himself off the couch to join Hex in the kitchen. “Need any help?”

“No, I’ve got it. Do you want a coffee? Tea?” Hex asked, pinching his cigarette between his lips as he grabbed coffee grounds from the cabinet and scooped some into the coffee machine.

“Juice would be great, if you have any,” Dallas replied softly. Hex ducked back into the fridge as the coffee machine bubbled to life, reading the labels on the few juice cartons he had inside.

“There’s mango-peach, lemonade… Oh, and apple,” Hex relayed, peering over his shoulder to make sure the teenager had heard him.

“Mango-peach would be great, please,”

Hex took the carton out of the fridge and poured a glass of juice for Dallas, still unsure of what he could make the three of them for an impromptu brunch. “How do you feel about frozen waffles?” Hex asked, ninety-five percent sure he had some buried somewhere in his freezer.

“Mostly impartial,” Dallas answered honestly.

“I can work with impartial,” Hex said, flicking his cigarette over the ashtray he kept on his counter. He turned his head as he heard feet on the hardwood leading into the living room, and he smirked slightly as Asa entered the room, his hair sticking out in all directions. “Morning, Sleeping Beauty,” Hex smiled, which earned him a death glare.

“Oh, thank Christ, you’re making coffee,” Asa said, his expression softening slightly. “Can I steal a cig?”

“Yeah, no problem,” Hex chuckled, offering his pack of cigarettes and his lighter to the fae. Asa gratefully took them, lighting up immediately and breathing in deeply as he sat down at the kitchen island. Hex moved the ashtray onto the island, puffing appreciatively on his own cigarette. “Are frozen waffles okay for.. Whatever meal this is?” he added.

“Hex, you could feed me one of those fucking canned sandwich things and I would not complain at this point,” Asa mumbled around his cigarette, and Hex cackled loudly as he turned to search for the waffles in the freezer.

 

\---

 

At around quarter after four, Dallas and Hex piled into the Jeep and drove as close as they could get to the meetup spot before parking and beginning the walk the rest of the way. The parade began at five, but people had begun to gather at four, so Hex assumed that showing up at four-thirty was a safe bet.

“There’s a party afterwards with food and junk,” Hex said as they got out of the Jeep, and he locked the doors before stuffing his keys into the pocket of his jeans. “We don’t have to stay too long, but we could check it out after the parade if you’re feeling up to it?”

He saw Dallas hesitate for a moment, but the teenager nodded with visible certainty. “Sure. It should be fun.”

Hex smiled brightly, gesturing for Dallas to follow as he began to walk in the direction of the meetup spot. “Is there anyone specific you’re celebrating today for?” he asked, trying to sound casual despite the fact that it was rather sombre subject matter. Of course, they were celebrating and remembering the lives of those they had lost, which was nice, but the theme was still those who had died. Hex understood how sensitive a topic it could be for some people.

“My abuelo,” Dallas said, though his voice didn’t sound different than its typical monotone. “He passed away a few years ago.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Hex said, because he couldn’t think of another way to reply.

“It’s all right,” said Dallas, sighing softly as he looked up at the gloomy sky overhead. It looked as if it was going to rain. “What about you?”

“A friend’s little sister,” Hex divulged, his phone brushing against his knuckles as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat. He remembered reading Garrett’s text the previous day, how a simple happy birthday still meant so much to him. He missed him. He hadn’t even been gone a year.

Dallas hummed in acknowledgement, generally not one for words, and the two continued in comfortable silence as rain droplets slowly began to drip from the sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sombre chapter ending for two sombre boys.


End file.
